Diamonds and Rust
by R. M. Jackson
Summary: AU. Literati. Jess was sent to Stars Hollow when he was eight years old. Since then, he and Rory have been best friends. When they finally get together, how will they face hardships as a couple instead of just friends?
1. Sittin' in a Tree

This started off as a one shot for _Kiss Me Fool,_ but my muse rebelled. In that light, I've decided to make this multiple chapters. Don't worry, I'm not ignoring the rest of my works. You'll see chapters for each up by Christmas.

This is an alternate universe fic. Jess was sent to live with Luke when he was eight years old. Because of that, parts of his personality are different. Keep that in mind. Rory and Jess are both sophomores at Chilton. They are **not** together, just friends. I know **exactly** where this fic is going.

**Disclaimer: It's too late [early? to be witty. Let's just say I own nada.**

* * *

"Look at them. It's like he's trying to get something off her face." Rory cringed as she poured syrup over her stack of pancakes.

Lorelai looked out the window at the two teens making out in the gazebo. "What's wrong with Jess having a little girlfriend?" she asked as she drained her coffee mug.

Rory made a face. "Nothing. It's just...uh. Some of us are _trying_ to eat here."

As the elder Gilmore took a bite of her own pancakes, she smirked at her daughter. "And to think, we always imagined that you would be the one little Jesse would be corrupting."

Grumbling both to herself and aloud, Rory looked up from her breakfast. "Not helping Mom. Really, not helping."

"It's not like you have the hots for Jess or anything."

Rory gave her a blank stare. "Of course not," she finally said. "Why would I?"

"Because it's _Jess,_" Lorelai said, as if it were as obvious to Rory as it was to her.

Rory shifted her weight in the chair.

"Oh my God! You have the hots for Jess!" Lorelai exclaimed.

Rory, while in mid-sip, spit her coffee out. Sputtering, she scurried to clean up her mess. "Could you say it any louder?" she snapped.

"Rory and Jess, sittin' in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes Rory with a baby carriage!" Lorelai sang under her breath, making it so only Rory could hear her.

Hurriedly, Rory looked around to make sure no one was within an ear shot of her mother. When she was satisfied that there was nobody around, Rory smacked Lorelai's arm.

Lorelai pouted. "Don't hurt Momma."

"Ugh. I need to catch my bus." Rory downed the rest of her coffee and proceeded to grab the to-go cup Luke had set out for her.

"Bye Sweets!" Lorelai yelled after her, not even questioning why she wasn't grabbing a ride with Jess. Rory winced, gave her mother a weak smile and headed out the door.

As she swung the door open, Jess caught it from the other side. "What's up doc?" he asked slyly.

Rory cocked her head to the side. "What's up with Miss White Trash trying to eat your face off?"

Jess scowled. "Rory, it's nothing."

"Yeah. Okay," she said, a nonchalant tone creeping into her words. Rory didn't look back at Jess, and instead started to walk to the bus stop. Pausing slightly when she heard the jingle of keys, Rory turned around to face Jess.

"What? No company today?" he asked, taken aback.

Rory sighed as Jess adjusted his backpack on his right shoulder. "Only if you let me tie your tie the right way."

Jess glanced down at the tie draped around his neck. "What's wrong with it?"

Rolling her eyes in frustration, Rory grabbed Jess by his blazer and dragged him along. "Come on, we have to leave now."

The two friends got into the beat up car and Jess revved the engine. Rory turned on the CD player and inserted _London Calling._

"So who is she?" Rory asked tentatively.

"Her name is Shane," Jess said, not taking his eyes off the road.

"As in "come back"?"

"That offends her."

"She grasps that much?" Rory asked, gasping.

Jess shook his head. "Rory, you know it isn't serious." She didn't respond. "It's never serious."

_The Guns of Brixton_ ended, so Rory ejected the CD in favor of another one. Whenever Jess wanted to talk about girls, she always quieted down. As _Master of Puppets _filled the car, Rory twirled The Clash CD around in the case.

"Fidgety today?" Jess asked.

"No. Just not enough coffee." Rory picked up the Luke's to-go cup and took a long drink of the bitter liquid. "And not enough patience to deal with Paris today."

"Is there ever enough patience?" Jess snorted. "It's _Paris._"

Rory sighed. "I don't understand why you won't write for the paper."

Jess scoffed. "I barely have enough time to do all the work they dump on us."

"But you're such a good writer..."

"You've never read anything I've written."

"That's not true!" Rory turned the volume down on the stereo. "I've proofread your essays."

"Essays aren't articles. Besides, I hate the paper. And Paris, who is the paper." Jess honked at the person in front of him. "Looking for a different shade of green? Christ's sake."

"Forget it. This is useless."

"And yet we go through this every morning..." Jess rolled his eyes.

Rory giggled. "What can I say? We've been friends for too long."

"Huh. Is that it?" Jess pulled into his usual parking space and spied a blonde heading toward them.

"GILMORE!"

"Jeez. I can't escape this chick." Jess attempted to hide in the driver's seat as Rory let herself out of the car.

"Paris..."

"You have responsibilities!"

Rory sighed, knowing where this was going.

"I needed all the articles this morning! But Gilmore, you were nowhere to be found!"

"Paris, the articles aren't due until this afternoon."

"I changed my mind! You'd know that if you were early! But you were slacking off with Mariano over here. I'm disgusted with you." Paris folded her arms across her chest and Jess climbed out of the car.

Rory dug through her bag and produced a folder with a _Hello Kitty_ sticker on it. "Here's your article, Paris."

Paris snatched the article from Rory's grasp. "Fine. But don't expect it on the first page!" Article in hand, Paris stalked off the parking lot.

"Well, that was pleasant."

* * *

"How was school?" Lorelai asked.

"Paris. Need I say more?" Rory sighed as she took a long, grateful gulp of the coffee Lorelai had just handed her.

"Enough said. How's Jess?"

"No comment." Rory placed the mug back on the table.

"You stopped yapping long enough to know what you want?" Luke asked gruffly.

"Burger and fries...with a side of fries. Ooh! And coffee." Lorelai smiled devilishly.

"Same," Rory said, not bothering to reiterate.

"Two plates of death coming right up."

For a moment, both Gilmores sipped their coffee as they anticipated their meals. Neither said anything, and Rory liked it that way. She didn't need her mother teasing her about her longtime childhood friend. That's all Jess was and would ever be, right? Of course. She and Jess had been friends since Liz had dumped him in Stars Hollow when he was eight years old. Essentially, they had grown up together. In a way, Jess was almost like her big brother; a dark haired, absolutely adorable brother, but a brother all the same. Nothing would ever change between them, and Rory knew that.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Jess asked as he set down their heaping plates of burgers and fries.

Rory looked up in surprise. "That's all I'm worth to you?"

Jess dug his wallet out his pocket and tossed it to her. "See how much cash is in there!" he shouted as went to grab an order of the counter.

Tentatively, Rory flipped open the wallet. There were several crisp bills in there. She looked up at Jess questioningly as he rounded their table. He didn't look back, but paused as she lifted the flap in front of his picture holder. "You've got pictures of us in your wallet?" Rory asked.

Jess shrugged. "Huh. Guess so." He took the wallet from her hands and sorted through the money. As he fanned the bills out in front of her face, she smiled. "Rory Gilmore, that's how much you're worth." Pocketing the wallet as he sauntered away, quite pleased with himself, Jess couldn't help but overhear:

"Rory and Jess, sittin' in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First comes love, then comes marriage..."


	2. You Don't Tell Female Friends That!

Here's chapter two! I just need to correct something from the last chapter: Rory and Jess are nearing the end of their **Junior** year at Chilton. I'm pretty sure that's what I meant when I was writing the note last time...it just came out as the wrong grade. Whoops.

Thanks to all my reviewers! _Starletelena, gilmorefanforever (sophie!!), Kassandra27, piper14798, QuEEnSeRb716, missedthetrain, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, JESSandRORYforever, Jeremy Shane, Dusk Reaper, and Curley-Q. Thanks a bunch! I hope you like this chapter._

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, especially Gilmore Girls.**

* * *

"So, how's what her face?" Rory asked carefully as Jess drove them home from Chilton the next afternoon.

"Who? Shane?" Jess asked.

"Yeah. The girl who's face you've been sucking off on a daily basis,"

"Do I sense jealousy, Gilmore?" Jess snickered as he flipped his turn signal.

"NO!" she answered anxiously. "I mean, don't you want a companion that you can talk to?" she reasoned. The light turned red, so Jess took a moment to turn in Rory's direction. She had that expression on her face, the "I'm concerned about you" look invading her pristine features.

"Rory, I'm not looking for a relationship. I just want a little fun." Jess sighed and turned back to the road. "This isn't about me finding "companionship," is it?"

Rory sighed. "I just think it sucks you can't talk to her about anything important. You're better than that! Why can't you at least go out with a girl that has some substance? Some brains?" she ranted.

"Smart girls are mean," he grumbled under his breath.

"Rory Gilmore said "sucks"!" Jess laughed and eased his foot off the brake pedal. Jess didn't want Rory to know he was really just waiting for the right person to come along. He was in a romantic funk. When had he ever been in a relationship? Well, quite a few times. A real one? Never. "I don't need intelligent communication with a girl. That's what I have you for," he commented smartly.

"Gee, thanks. Way to make me feel loved," Rory grumbled softly, but just loud enough for Jess to hear. She peeked over at him to see what he was doing. Jess was a fidgety driver. He could never just hold the steering wheel and go forward, he needed to do something distracting to others. They were silent for the moment as Jess drummed his fingers lightly on the steering wheel. He smirked wildly at Rory as he drummed his fingertips on the wheel louder. He knew she hated the action, if not for the noise, the silence that caused it, so he continued. It would only be a matter of time before she chewed him out.

Rory glared at the side of Jess's head. He knew perfectly well he was bugging her, but he continued incessantly. She refused to take his bait. That was what he would always try to do, bait her. Nope, Rory Gilmore would not be baited. Jess stopped at another red light and averted his eyes to glance quickly at Rory, who had continued to glare. At his glance, she turned her head rapidly so that it would appear she was never looking in his direction at all.

"Careful, you'll get whiplash," he joked hastily. Rory scowled back at him, but was pleased that he had been the one to break the silence. Clearing her throat loudly was her way of getting his attention. Cautiously, he peered in her direction.

"How was your Franklin meeting?" he asked.

"One word: Paris."

"Point taken." The light turned green and Jess's foot left the brake in favor of the gas.

"Thanks for waiting," she said softly, and took a big sip of coffee.

"How else were you getting home?" he asked, trying to find something else to focus on rather than Rory's eyes.

"Bus."

"I rest my case." She was smiling. Christ, why did he love her smile? Jess shook his head, mentally berating himself for the interest.

"Well, thanks anyway." Jess didn't respond. Rory sighed and decided to change the subject. "So, when's our next movie night?"

"Don't know," Jess answered. It was the return of his monosyllabic self. In turn, Rory groaned.

The "Welcome to Stars Hollow" sign was in view. This car ride home had been unbearably long. Thankfully, Rory had nothing more to do that Friday night.

"You have dinner with the grandparents tonight?"

Except for dinner with the grandparents.

"Oh, um, yeah. I do have Friday Night Dinner."

"Figures. It _is_ Friday night." Jess smirked as he pulled in his space by the diner. "Do you know what time Emily will let you go?"

"Are you indicating you'll be free when I get home?" Rory asked, pleased that they might actually have some time together outside of a car. All they had done when they were alone was homework. A night out would be fun. At least Rory could get her mind off _Shane_. Ugh, why did she have to like Jess so much? Jess was Rory's, not Shane's.

"Depends when you get home."

Rory sighed. Of course. Whoever got to Jess first would be the one he spent his time with. Stupid Shane. Stupid Jess. "You know, the usual time," she answered vaguely.

Smirking, Jess responded, "Shane said something about coming over around seven, but I doubt that will last too long."

As response to his remark, Rory frown. He was smirking wildly again, but there was a glint in his chocolate eyes. "You're going to have sex with her?" she gasped.

"When is that such a news flash, Ror?" he laughed. Had he really been insinuating that the whole time they had discussed relationships? Every time he had "messed around," had that really been what he meant?

"You've had...you're not..." Rory backed away in anger. "Why wouldn't you tell me?"

"Because you're a girl!" Jess spat, angered that she was upset with him. "You don't tell your female friends how many chicks you fuck!" Rory backed further away. This was a side of Jess she had never seen before. She had seen angry Jess before, but this was a new level. No matter what, he had never taken his anger out on Rory. He had ranted _to_ Rory, but he had never dared to yell at her as he just had. "And you're a prude!" he shouted, knowing that he had already hurt Rory.

The tears shone in her eyes as she lunged to smack him across the face. Her anger ripped through her common sense and she slammed the car door that she had been holding onto for support and dear life. "Fuck...you," she growled, her teeth and jaw clenched, her movement and voice shaky, her face red and ripe with anger.

As she stalked off, Jess mentally scolded himself. How could he? How could he say those things to _that_ girl? Rory was further off in the distance. It was easy enough to run after her, but his feet were planted to the ground. The door of the diner swung open and hit the frame with a loud _smack!_ as it closed.

"JESS!" Luke bellowed from the entrance.

He hung his head in shame, but was unable to move. Stiffly, he turned to the diner. "Yes, dearest Uncle Luke?"

"What the hell just happened?"

* * *

Jess had been sitting on the Gilmore's top stair for the past hour. His tattered copy of Huck Finn was abandoned in favor of a pack of Marlboros. He was back to being chain smoking Jess. Carelessly, he flicked his eighth cigarette on the lawn. The familiar Gilmore jeep had yet to pull up, so Jess selected another cigarette and lit it with ease. Tense was the only word that could be used to describe how he felt. Taking another drag off the cigarette, Jess noticed a shadow lurking down the street. A sullen looking Rory was traipsing in his direction with a to-go cup from Luke's. Obviously, she had left Lorelai at the diner in favor of some alone time with pillow. Jess blew smoke from his nose and mouth before discarding the ninth cigarette in a row. Rather than fling it in the yard, he snuffed it out on the stair and saved it. 

Rory walked up the stairs, past the pile of cigarette butts, past the discarded copy of Huck Finn, and past Jess. "Rory?"

She looked angrily in his direction. "Go away," she hissed. He had never seen Rory like this before. She had been angry when Tristan had cheated on her, she had been livid, but this surpassed the emotions she let out.

"I'm sorry!" he called as she opened the front door. She shot him a look that made him want to crawl in a hole. "I didn't mean anything I said!" he shouted louder, almost angry that she was disregarding his apology. Apologizing didn't come easy to Jess, Rory should have known that.

She did know that. She just didn't care. Slipping into the house wasn't going to solve anything. Jess was trying, he was trying incredibly hard. Rory thought about the last few months. She thought about how they had drifted, how Jess spent more time with his guy friends and hopeless flings. She thought about how much he had hurt her, and how much sooner she deserved an apology. The hurt flashed in her eyes like lightning. She knew apologizing was hard, but when it hadn't been necessary, there was no explanation, no apology, no strings attached. They had mutual forgiveness. _Not this time,_ Rory thought as she smacked the front door shut in front of his face.

Chain smoking Jess was back in full force as he lit up number ten and flipped the Gilmore house off before returning to the diner.


	3. Chainsmoking Jess

Eh, this too a bit longer than I would have liked. Here it is, though, chapter three. I enjoyed writing it once the inspiration flew back, so I hope you like it as well! While I was stuck, I wrote beyond this chapter. You can expect the next chapter much sooner!

Disclaimer: No..just...no.

Thanks everyone who reviewed chapter two!: **_Dazedandconfuddled, Curley-Q, RaeRae, Jeremy Shane, Red n black roses, gilmoregirlsalwaysandforever, Lucille Mabel, Kassandra27, Dusk Reaper, gilmorefanforever, watergurl123,_ _JessRoryYunaTidusforever, and ShaolinQueen. _**_Reviews make the world go round. Press that pretty little button._ : )

* * *

Straying away from conflict was one of Rory's strong suits. All weekend, she attempted to avoid Jess at all costs.

Unfortunately, everything reminded her of Jess. It almost didn't make sense for her to be draped across her bed moping. Every book she read had tiny, precise notes in the margins, every song she knew had been played in his beat up car, and every moment was empty. Rory tossed _Howl_ across the room in frustration. It hit the wall with a smack and fell into a pile of laundry.

Laundry! Jess and laundry obviously did not go hand in hand. Carefully, Rory picked a shirt off the top of the pile and began to sort.

Until she found his disgusting Metallica shirt staring up at her, that is.

Rory was at her breaking point. Honestly, it was probably stupid for her to be this angry at Jess to begin with. At this point, she couldn't remember what started the fight.

Right. Jess was being an ass. Then again, what else was new?

Jess was having sex.

Then, there was Shane.

Jess was also spending too much time with his other friends, and never with her.

But it was still wrong to blame it all on Jess.

He had apologized, which absolutely shocked her. Jess Mariano was never one for apologies. No matter how hard she tried to avoid blaming herself, Rory knew she was also at fault. Jess was even chain-smoking again, and he hadn't done that in a long time. It wasn't because she was frustrated, or because it was nearly three in the afternoon and she was still wearing her pajamas, but Rory decided she needed to be the one to apologize now.

* * *

Chain-smoking Jess was back with a vengeance. It didn't seem to matter what he did. After a while, he just needed to sit back and smoke half a pack of Marlboros.

"How many times have I told you about smoking in here?" Luke had snapped that morning before he left for the diner. Sunday was always a day off for Jess, and typically his day with Rory. Lately, he had been spending this day with other friends rather than with Rory. He figured there must be a good reason for avoiding Rory and provoking arguments, but couldn't find one at that very moment.

Jess sighed. At Luke's request, he had snubbed out the cigarette and slipped the pack under his mattress. The cigarettes were the only thing keeping him sane right now. Every book he tried to read, even Hemingway, reminded him of Rory. He couldn't listen to music because every song he owned had been played in his beat up car. And when he thought of the music in his beat up car, he thought of Rory in the passenger seat on the way to school, drinking coffee and bopping to the music.

He heard movement outside the office door and went to investigate. At first, Jess though it was Luke checking to make sure he wasn't smoking again. The rustling outside the door stopped as soon as he neared it. Jess caught sight of a shadow coming back in his direction.

Was there someone pacing back and forth in front of the office apartment? Jess checked again; it did appear that way. Somehow, he knew the contemplative figure was actually Rory. He weighed his options, debated with himself, and tried to imagine what to say to her.

For all Rory knew, he wasn't even in the apartment. Then Jess remembered that Luke was downstairs and probably told her to come up and sort him out. Luke was always doing that. He knew that only Rory could make him come to his senses, especially if he was relying on cigarettes to calm his nerves. He watched the shaded figure pace back and forth a few times before turning away from the door. Jess may have apologized first, but he wasn't going to let himself be walked over. Then again, if he were to look at it from Rory's view, he would probably think differently of his actions.

True, he had pretty much abandoned her in favor of the guys and his countless flings. It wasn't that Jess no longer cared for Rory. No, that definitely was not it. In fact, the opposite was true. Jess had a crush on Rory from the time they were thirteen years old. Sometimes, especially lately, being near Rory hurt him. Little by little, he felt his defensive walls surrounding him in her presence. Personally, Jess hated himself for not letting Rory in more often.

After a bit of soul searching, Jess turned back to the door to find that his pacing figure was gone. He pulled the door open gently and saw Rory sitting on the ground, knees pulled up to her chest. She was crying. Judging by how red and splotchy her face was, Jess suspected she had been crying for a while. At first, she didn't notice him standing over her. When she did notice, she looked away tearfully. Jess sat down next to his friend and pulled his own legs up to his chest.

There were no words between them for a few minutes. After that, minutes felt like hours, and Rory couldn't stand it anymore. In order to break the tension, she buried her face into Jess's sweater. He was warm and smelled slightly of aftershave. She didn't need to say anything and Jess forgave her for it. He slung his arm around her shoulders as she cried silently into his sweater.

"I'm sorry," she hiccupped a bit as she worked her words out.

Jess smoothed Rory's messy hair. "I know," he whispered into her ear.

They sat silently in the hallway for a few more minutes. "I don't want to fight anymore," Rory said softly. "I'm sorry for being…so mean."

Jess smirked at her. "I'm sorry for being an asshole." He sighed. "I deserved it, by the way," he admitted sullenly.

Rory shook her head. "No, you didn't."

"I was such a jerk," he pressed on. Jess normally didn't apologize for anything; he figured he better make it the best damn apology ever.

"I should have figured you were having sex. Look at you," Rory said. Immediately, she blushed.

Jess wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. "You've been looking?" Truthfully, he was pleasantly surprised. Imagine that! Rory Gilmore had been checking him out.

Rory's shoulders slumped immediately. "Ugh. I didn't mean it like that. You're such a guy!" She smacked his arm and he pretended it hurt, as he would so often do.

"Good, you're talking again," Luke said gruffly as he came up the stairs. "He's been smoking," he informed Rory.

Jess groaned. Rory hated it when he smoked. If he didn't have a verbal beating coming before, he definitely had it coming now. Rory tried to ignore Luke's comment as he walked into the apartment. Jess took Rory in his arms and she snuggled closer to him, enjoying this moment before he went back to his old ways. Both of them ignored the clanking from the staircase. It took a few seconds before a jilted female voice rang through the hallway. "Jess!"


	4. Almost Famous and Thai Food

All my revisions for this chapter were deleted when I ran into a problem with my laptop. I fixed everything, so here it is! There is some reminiscing in this chapter. For the most part, the reminiscing tells the story of Jess and Rory's friendship and how it changed over the years. It's important in the development of the next few chapters. 

As always, thank you to my wonderful reviewers. I wouldn't want to write this without you: _Sophie, Red n Black Roses, OxoXLillyXoxO, Dusk Reaper, ShaolinQueen, kathi-ryn, Curley-Q, Lucille Mabel, Miguel51, (Sorry about the Tristan reference. I don't like him either, but I prefer him to Dean. I wanted to bring a guy that everyone knew from Chilton into the picture. Don't worry, after chapter four, there isn't any mention of him) Jeremy Shane, Kassandra27, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, Brightest Firefly, and JESSandRORYforever. Thanks a bunch!!_

_Disclaimer: Jeez. Not mine!! I swear._

* * *

Jess was dumbfounded; he did not know what to say to Shane. Instead, he continued to sit on the ground with Rory cradled in his arms.

"Jess?" she asked once more.

Rather than continue to be mute, Jess got to his feet and ushered Shane downstairs to the diner. Rory wasn't sure how to react, but sat silently on the floor until Jess and Shane were out of view. She allowed a muffled cry to escape her lips. Jess Mariano would never be hers. She had realized it before, just as she realized it now.

The office door swung open as Luke emerged in the hallway. "Where's Jess?" he demanded.

Tearfully, Rory looked up at Luke from her place on the floor. "Downstairs in the diner with Shane," she answered bitterly.

Luke crouched by Rory. "For what it's worth, I wish the two of you would finally get together too." He didn't wait for what Rory had to say, but straightened up and went down the stairs to tend to the diner and possibly his nephew.

Still, Rory sat and contemplated what she needed to do next. Jess liked girls; Jess had always liked girls. Even when they had been younger, Jess had been extremely attractive. It seemed to Rory that girls would always seek him out. She would never get her chance. On one hand, that sat just fine with Rory. Jess was a heartbreaker. From the time he was eleven years old, Jess would try to charm girls. Quite a few times, he would discover older girls interested in him. Although he was not considered tall now, he was, after all, only 5'8; Jess had been a good height at eleven years old. Even at that age, Lorelai had noticed Jess was growing up quickly. Rory's maturation in the "guy area" came slower than it did for Jess and his attraction to girls. Both friends liked to read, but Rory preferred it to going out. On that note, Jess would cart his Hemingway paperback around in his back pocked when he courted girls. Over the years, Rory and Jess continued their friendship. In fact, their close friendship often times hindered Jess's chances to hook up with someone new.

Around their entrance to high school, Rory finally became hung up on Jess. Apparently, he seemed to sense it. Rory noticed that around the time of her newfound attraction for her best friend, Jess would ditch her in favor of guy friends and dates. When Rory approached his friend on the issue, he brushed her off, merely responding that it "meant nothing."

It was freshman year when their issues straightened out and their friendship went back to normal. Freshman year also brought Rory's first boyfriend, Tristan DuGray. From the start, Jess despised Tristan. At first, Rory was flattered. Jess was finally paying attention to her; he was finally jealous. Jess Mariano was getting a taste of his own bitter medicine.

Chilton was a difficult school for Jess. Although he was smart, he had a hard time with paying attention. Most of the time Rory and Jess spent together was study time and the half hour on the bus to and from Hartford. Rory suddenly found herself neglecting Tristan in favor of Jess. Even though he was her best friend, Lorelai had to remind Rory that Jess was _only_ her best friend. She had other priorities, such as school and her _boyfriend_. Rory would scowl at the thought, but continued to choose Jess over Tristan.

Finally, Rory and Tristan's relationship turned from a few months to a year. They had been dating for the entirety of their freshman year. Over the summer, they had grown apart a bit. Rory considered herself lucky to be starting fresh in her sophomore year. She vowed to pay less attention to Jess and more attention to the boy who had professed his love for her.

It came as a shock to Rory when Jess discovered Tristan cheating on her.

There was less of a shock when she found he had pummeled her ex boyfriend in the parking lot.

That night, Jess sat with Rory on the couch and comforted her. It marked a new phase in their ongoing friendship. Between that time and the beginning of the next year, Rory thought Jess might have had a little crush on her.

But abruptly as the coddling began, it ended. Soon, Jess was back to his old self. He dated all the time and spent the remainder with his guy friends. Since he had the car, Jess would constantly give Rory a ride to and from Hartford. Every morning, she would climb gratefully into his beat up jalopy with a coffee in one hand. Usually, with the addition of the afternoon commute home, that was the extent of their time together. When Luke issued Sunday as Jess's day off, they began to spend that day with each other.

Rory heard footsteps clatter up the stairs. Hurriedly, she wiped her eyes and brushed the dust off her pants. She spun around at looked into Jess's eyes.

"Are you okay? Luke said you were upset." His voice cut through the silence that had been created since he had left.

Rory shook her head. "What would I be upset about?" she asked. She smiled and tried to convince herself there really wasn't anything for her to be upset about.

Jess shrugged and brushed her aside. "I broke it off with Shane."

"Really?" Rory asked, pretending she was uninterested.

"Yeah, she was starting to get attached." Jess slid down to the floor where Rory had been sitting. "I'm not boyfriend material," he said after a moment.

"I thought you didn't want a girlfriend anyway," Rory responded matter-of-factly.

"I don't," Jess said quickly.

"You've never really had a girlfriend before," Rory pointed out. "How do you know you don't want one?"

"Because I've been just fine without one," Jess said. "Besides, I have you." Rory blushed. "I kiss girls, and when I want to have meaningful conversations, you're here."

Rory frowned. "Thanks. Somehow, I think that was supposed to sound nicer."

"Probably."

Rory shook her head and stuck her hand out so Jess could get off the floor. "It's Sunday," she said.

"Movie and food?" he asked. Rory smiled in return.

"Jess Mariano, it's very hard to stay mad at you."

"Exactly what I was thinking." Jess slung his arm around Rory's shoulders as they made their way downstairs. "Almost Famous and Thai food?"

Rory growled at him.

"Okay, I have plans. Let's go to the movie place. We'll rent any movie you like. Really, your choice. Then we'll order Indian food. After we're done, we'll burn your house down and flee the country. Lorelai would mad, you know." Jess smirked wildly as Rory smacked his shoulder.

"I liked the first two items," she said.

"Okay! Almost Famous and Thai food it is!" Jess let go of Rory and began to run.

"Jess Mariano!" She shouted as she chased him down the street.


	5. Dear Rory: I miss you?

Chapter five! I am updating everything I can before the weekend. I had been caught in a whirlwind of things I had to do for my mother. She's recuperating nicely from her stroke, but there is still much that needs to be done for her. So I slacked on writing. But I've got everything together now. Don't be alarmed at the ending for this chapter. There will be happier times for Rory and Jess!

As always, thank you to all my reviewers! Thanks to everyone that left me feedback for chapter four: _Kassandra27, hollowgirl22, ShaolinQueen, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, Jeremy Shane, Dusk Reaper, kathi-ryn, blonde-biatch, Curley-Q, enviedxl0ve, JESSandRORYforever, Sophie, and Lucille Mabel. I love your reviews!_

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Gilmore Girls, there wouldn't be any need for me to write fanfiction.

* * *

"Rory Gilmore, how does it feel to be starting the summer before senior year?" Jess asked as they cruised along the highway from Hartford. 

"Weird," Rory answered.

"And I'm the monosyllabic one," Jess joked. "I still can't believe Paris roped you into candidacy."

Rory groaned. Somehow, Paris had convinced her to run as the vice president. She had no idea why, but Rory agreed to it. "Don't remind me."

"As long as the trip to Washington doesn't get in the way, what are we doing this summer?" Jess asked. He flipped the blinker on and turned right.

"I don't know. The usual?" Rory asked as she sipped her coffee.

Jess took a left and looked at Rory as he slowed to a stop. "Okay."

"We are you going? We've gone to Chilton for three whole years now. This isn't the way back from Hartford." Rory took another sip of her coffee as Jess pulled onto an unfamiliar road.

"Because we're not going back to Stars Hollow just yet," Jess reasoned.

"But _Jess_, I have to be at my grandparents' house in-"

"Four hours. Chill." Jess flipped on the radio to shut Rory up. It had usually been silent in the car. Neither one of them had bothered to put music on. During the past few weeks, they had stopped embracing silence and starting filling it up. Rory was even getting Jess to talk a bit more, much to her satisfaction.

Rory smiled and put the empty to-go container in the front cup holder. She wasn't sure where they were going, but she was glad they were. Jess had never been one for surprises either, but when he was spontaneous, it was amazing. On his smirk, Rory turned up "London Calling" and started dancing in the front seat. Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw him smile.

In fifteen minutes, Jess pulled into a parking lot and backed into a space. "Here we are."

"Where are we?" Rory asked as she opened her door and stepped out of the car.

"You'll see," Jess smirked. He walked up to the store and ushered Rory in.

"Oh…" Rory looked up at the bookcases. There were more books in this little store than a library. She had never seen bookcases that reached so far up. They wrapped around the walls.

"You like it?" Jess asked.

Rory nodded.

He took his wallet from his pocket and pulled out a fifty-dollar bill. "Go nuts," he said and handed her the money.

Rory eyed Ulysses S. Grant and looked back at Jess. "What's this for?" she asked timidly.

Jess put his arm around Rory's thin shoulders and whispered, "Because you're my best friend. I love you, and I'm sorry I was a jerk."

Rory smiled. "You didn't have to."

"Yes, I did. You were right; I had been blowing you off a lot. I wanted to do something special. I found this place and I thought, _this is perfect._"

"It is. It really is. Thank you, Jess." Rory smiled at him and gazed lovingly at the books that adorned the walls. "You have to help me pick."

Jess smirked. "You're looking for some Hemingway?"

"Ew, no. Forget it. You can wait outside!" Rory laughed.

"Then I'm taking my money back!" Jess argued playfully.

Rory smiled. She and Jess were back to the good old days. This was how it should always have been.

* * *

"How long are you going to be in Washington for?" Jess asked as he sipped his coffee. Rory had just received word that she and Paris had won their election. Because they were in office next year, they would have to visit Washington D.C. 

"All summer," Rory said sadly. "We'll have a couple of days before I leave."

"Oh, Sweet Child of Mine! We have much to do before you leave me," Lorelai said and sat down.

"We'll have a movie night with my mom," Rory said.

Jess nodded. "I can settle for that."

"We'll write," Rory said.

"We'll write," Jess agreed.

* * *

It had been two days since Rory had left with Paris. Jess sat alone in the apartment he shared with Luke. He was lonely, and not even reading was doing the trick. Rory had advised him not to call her, based on the knowledge that she and Paris would be attending seminars and banquets. Jess had not heard from her yet. Recalling the promise of written word, Jess pulled his notebook from under the mattress and fumbled with the pages. It had been a long time since Rory and Jess had written letters. When they were much younger, Jess had been sent to summer camp. During those long two months, the pair exchanged letters every couple of days. 

Jess uncapped his pen and began to scrawl on the paper.

_Dear Rory,_

_It's odd to be here in Stars Hollow without you. That year I was at summer camp has been our only time apart. I haven't been able to listen to The Clash or read much of anything without thinking of you._

Jess paused. His letter sounded too heartfelt and mush. He groaned and crumpled the letter up in a ball.

_Dear Rory,_

_How is Washington D.C. with Paris? I bet she's already been on your case multiple times. I wonder if you'll meet any guys there. It would be weird for you to come home hitched. I don't know how I would deal with that._

Jess stopped writing again. For some reason, he was pouring his feelings out to Rory on paper. Obviously, this written word was easier than talking to Rory. He crumpled up the letter and started again.

_Rory,_

_Hey. How are you? It's been a couple days and I already miss your smile._

"This isn't going to work." Jess whipped the pen across the room and hit his head on the desk.

_Rory,_

_I promised I would write. How are you doing? I hope you and Paris are getting along. I'll see you when you get back. Hopefully there is plenty going on and you'll write me back._

_Jess_

That would have to do. Jess reviewed his incredibly short note and shoved it in an envelope. Rory would not care for the briefness of his letter, but at least she wouldn't know he was thinking about how beautiful she was.

* * *

"How's lover boy?" Paris asked as Rory ripped open her letter from Jess. 

Rory blushed as she unfolded the letter. "Jess and I are not involved," she said.

"Sure. I see the way Mariano looks at you," Paris said as she braided her hair. She noticed Rory was scowling at the paper. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"Jess. He always lets himself loose when given a pen and paper. I thought he'd be a little less..."

Paris scanned the letter after Rory handed it to her. "Brief," she said simply.

"Tell me about it. I can't believe I sent my letter already." Rory slid under her covers and hugged her pillow tightly. For some reason, there was a clenching in her chest. She had felt like that before. Rory remembered her chest clenching after Tristan had cheated on her. It felt like her heart was breaking in her chest. There was no possible explanation for it other than one. Rory loved her best friend, and he was always going to brush her aside. She hoped the letter would never get to Jess as she hugged her pillow tightly.


	6. Don't Get the Wrong Idea

Chapter six! In this chapter, you get to read Rory's letter, Rory comes back from Washington D.C...and...well. You'll have to read and find out.

Rory's letter is the other part of the chapter in italics.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed chapter five!: _Jeremy Shane, ShaolinQueen, Java, FindMeBroken, Sophie, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, Love.Always.Alice.and.Jasper, Kassandra27, Curley-Q, diaro, JESSandRORYforever, Lucille Mabel, and XxXDrama QueenXxX_

_**Disclaimer: If you want to give me the rights, sure! Otherwise, nothing is mine...blah blah blah...**_

_

* * *

__Dear Jess,_

_Being in Washington is like being in a dream. It's a very odd dream, one that comes with challenges and responsibilities. Paris is trying her hardest to be nice to others. She's actually relating with me a bit as well. We've spent some time together already. I think this may be the year we start to get along. I doubt she will be this nice next year at Chilton, but it doesn't hurt to have another potential ally._

_Anyway, I'm getting to my point here. I miss you. That looks crazy to me. I've just left and I already miss you. I feel like being sentimental and emotional as I'm writing. I've yet to discover if it's due to the lack of caffeine or because I'm writing about you. Again, that does sound crazy. I can't imagine not being in your life, or you in mine. _

_I'm actually going to end it here, just so you don't get the wrong idea. I miss you, I love you, and I'll be waiting for your letter._

_Love, Rory_

Jess scowled at the Hello Kitty stationary adorned with Rory's handwriting. He wasn't sure how he wanted to perceive her message. Luke was sitting at the opposite end of the apartment when he looked up.

"Letter from Rory?" he asked as he studied the scowl that had crossed his nephew's face.

Jess held the letter up. "From Rory," he affirmed.

"Well, that's nice." Luke noticed the frown that had replaced the scowl. "Isn't it?"

"Just dandy," Jess replied as he crumpled the letter into a ball. Luke glanced back down at his ledger while Jess scrambled out the door.

Luke sighed and picked the paper ball off the kitchen table. Smoothing out the letter, Luke tried to figure out why Jess suddenly had a reason to flee. Luke had read their letters before, but Rory was much more heartfelt that he was accustomed. It was the obvious reason for Jess to discard the letter.

As Luke read the letter, Jess sat outside the diner smoking. It was rare that Jess lit up a cigarette anymore, but he needed one at that particular moment. When it came to Rory and his emotions toward her, a cigarette was in order.

* * *

"I got you out of Friday night dinner," Lorelai mentioned as they rode home from the airport. 

"You did?" Rory asked. "Why? How did you do that?"

"I told them you weren't coming home until tomorrow. I figured you and Jess could use some time together. He's been moping around that diner since you left." Due to the opportune red light, Lorelai looked at her daughter in the passenger seat. "What's wrong?" she finally asked when Rory refused to give her any sentiment or reaction.

"Jess. We barely wrote or spoke while I was in Washington D.C.," she said while fiddling with her thumbs.

Lorelai sighed. She had seen Jess hanging around in the diner for most of the summer. For the rest of it, she had noticed him around town with a book or a cigarette. When he wasn't in Lorelai's peripheral vision, she suspected he spent time at the bridge and other places he and Rory had in common. "He missed you, kid."

"I'm sure," she said, skeptical that Jess would miss her even the littlest bit. "I bet he even got a new girl to suck his face off," she grumbled, just loud enough for Lorelai to hear her.

"Actually, that's the weird thing. We don't think there's a girl this summer."

Rory scoffed. "Yeah, right. And who's this "we" you speak off? Luke has never been able to keep tabs on Jess, even when he was ten years old." She shifted in the passenger seat as Lorelai looked over at her.

"You know, Jess is never going to tell you how he feels," Lorelai said, turning back to the road.

"How he feels about what?" Rory asked.

"You."

"What do you mean by that?" Rory asked as she straightened up in her seat. Her mother had definitely caught her attention with that piece of information. Although she wanted to believe anyone who brought up that particular issue with Jess, Rory had some semblance of reality. In the back of her mind, even though she tried to be hopeful on a daily basis, she knew Jess was Jess. Jess being Jess meant simply that he didn't focus long enough to care about her emotions past friendship. He moved from girl to girl to girl more often than the change of seasons.

"Please. You know Jess has been interested in you for years," Lorelai said.

Rory laughed. "Stop joking."

"I'm not joking, Sweets. Just give him a little time." Lorelai pulled in front of the diner and shifted to park. "Go and see him. I'll dump the bags at the Crap Shack."

"Okay," Rory said softly.

She opened the door to Luke's a spotted Jess reading at the counter. He was immersed the book and didn't even notice when she sat down next to him. Drumming her fingers on the countertop pulled his attention away from the written words. "So…you're back."

She wasn't too surprised by his uninterested tone. "Yeah. That's me. Back."

"I missed you."

"You did?" she asked, almost astounded he would admit something that personal to her.

Jess smirked and put his book down on the table. "What makes you think I didn't miss you?"

"Oh, well. I don't know. Probably your lack of letters and phone calls." Rory toyed with the book she had clutched in her hands.

"You were busy. I didn't know what to say."

Rory tried to accept that as an answer. "Okay."

"So what do you say? Want to get out of here?" Jess stood up and slid his book into his pocket.

Rory smiled in his direction. "Let's go!"

Nothing had changed between them. Everything was calm. Everything was right. Yet Rory still had the feeling of butterflies in her stomach. She gazed at him for a moment before he turned around to look at her. "Is there something wrong?" he asked.

Rory shook her head. "No. Everything's fine. Why?"

Shrugging, Jess answered, "Just looked pensive, that's all."

"So, where are we going?" Rory asked as she followed Jess to his car. He was parked right outside the diner. Obviously, they weren't just going to the bridge to read and scrawl marginal notes in each other's books.

"You're going to ruin the surprise," Jess grunted as he stuck his car key in the lock. He swung the door open for Rory, walked back around the car, and climbed in.

"A surprise?" Rory asked. She knew Jess well enough to know he wasn't good at spontaneity. The last time he had planned something was their last day of junior year. Obviously, that hadn't been too long ago. Still, Rory sat in the passenger seat of her best friend's car and pondered what he was up to.

* * *

"Was it amazing?" Lorelai cooed jokingly at Rory. They were at their usual table in Luke's the next morning. 

"Yes!" Rory beamed as she took a long sip of her coffee.

"You have to go over the details with Momma again. So he took you to a drive in movie…"

"And he had ten pounds of junk food stored in the trunk of his car," Rory went on.

"What movie?" Lorelai asked eagerly. She had been bouncing around all morning pressing her daughter for details since Rory had shown up late last night announcing that Jess had found a drive in movie theater.

Rory sighed lovingly. "Casablanca."

"Casablanca! Such a softie. I knew it." Lorelai held her cup in the air for one of their diner boys to fill.

Jess noticed Lorelai's cup in the air, an apparent sign that she desired a refill, and approached them with the coffee pot. It was too busy for Jess to be wrapped up in small talk, so he simply filled Lorelai's mug and fled off to the next table awaiting their refills.

"It was sweet," Rory said after Jess was out of earshot.

"He's doing a lot of nice stuff to make up for being a jerk," Lorelai said as she sipped her coffee.

"I noticed that. Did he always do that?" Rory asked.

Lorelai slammed her mug on the table. "No! He's only doing this to be nice to you. Are you blind?"

Taken aback, Rory stared at her mother. "What are you _talking_ about?" she hissed, ducking in case Jess heard their conversation.

"Rory! You _know_ Jess likes you. He's trying to get on your good side, even when he does something stupid such as not responding to your letters. He never did that when you were kids," Lorelai pointed out.

"_Mom._ I wrote a stupid letter, which covered some points I would have rather not covered. If Jess had something to add, he would have written it. He's better at writing than speaking," Rory explained as she drained her cup of coffee.

"Deny it all you want, hon." Lorelai sighed.

"I'm going to get some school supplies," Rory said. She kissed Lorelai goodbye, thankful for the end of their conversation.

As she neared the door, Lorelai turned in her chair and shouted to Rory, "Think about what I said!" Quickly, Rory hurried out the door and didn't look back.

While making his coffee rounds again, Jess noticed Lorelai's empty cup. "So," she said as he filled it. "Casablanca, huh?"

Blushing, Jess retracted the pot. "Huh. Look at the time." Before Lorelai could say anything else, Jess was gone.


	7. Nothing Happened! Something Happened!

Here's chapter seven! Chapter eight will follow shortly, due to the fact that chapter was what started this whole story! All have to do is revise the content a bit, and it will be all set.

Everyone that has reviewed so far, thanks! Special thanks to my reviewers from chapter six: _Kassandra27,_ _XxXDrama QueenXxX, Java, Good2Know,_ _JessRoryYunaTidusforever, Love.Always.Alice.and.Jasper, Sophie, Lucille Mabel, Jeremy Shane, Curley-Q, ShaolinQueen, blonde.biatch, lukkygrl08, and Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3. _**I love your reviews!**

**Disclaimer: You know, if I owned Gilmore Girls...**

* * *

"You're quiet today," Jess noted as he braked at the red light. Rory was sitting timidly in the passenger seat, clutching her to-go cup from Luke's. Their first day as seniors attending Chilton could not be going worse. Although they had seemingly been getting along well during the last two weeks of summer, there was still tension brewing between the two childhood friends.

Barely noticing that Jess was speaking to her, Rory continued to stare out the window. Her friend sighed, causing Rory to turn in his direction. "Hmm?"

He broke his concentration from the road and looked at Rory. "Nothing," he said meekly. For some reason, he could not bring himself to chat or engage in small talk. That phase in their relationship had come and gone. Hell, he wasn't even sure where they stood anymore. Jess shifted the gear from drive to park and turned the key in the ignition. "You want to talk?" he asked, not exactly sure where the conversation would veer off to.

Rory's lips curved slightly into a half-interested smile before she turned back to her coffee. "No. It's fine. We should get inside." She excused herself by pulling up the lock and letting herself out of the car. Jess watched as she grabbed her bag from the backseat. Settling the straps securely on her back and grasping the coffee nervously, Rory stepped away from the car. As he watched her walk toward the building, Jess sighed and extracted a pack of Camels out of his blazer pocket. Glad that he had remembered to take them from his leather jacket, he gratefully ripped the package open and fumbled for a lighter. Jess allowed the smoke to fill his car before he looked at his watch. Rory insisted they be early for the first day, so Jess complied. Unfortunately, he didn't have much to do in the terms of paths from lockers to classes.

Fifteen minutes and three cigarettes later, Jess finally pulled his own lock up and let himself out of the car. As he traipsed away from the beat up piece of junk, he couldn't help but think of the year ahead.

* * *

"Before I call the first Franklin meeting to order, has anyone seen Mariano?" Paris bellowed over the chatting voices in the Chilton newsroom. Rory's head snapped in the editor's direction as Jess sauntered in. "Okay. It's about time everyone showed up."

Jess took a seat next Rory at the long meeting table and elbowed her in the ribs. They had spent most of the day apart, mainly just passing in the halls. She gawked with her mouth open for a moment.

"It's not polite to stare," Jess reminded her. Promptly, she shut her mouth manually with her hand and touched his shoulder. "What?"

"Just wanted to see if you were an illusion." She turned to the sheet of paper Paris had placed in front of her while her attention diverted on Jess.

Picking up his own paper, Jess turned back to Rory. "What's wrong?" he asked.

Rory shielded her face behind the paper and whispered, "You joined the Franklin!"

Shrugging, Jess whispered back, "You've been bugging me to write articles for years. Change of heart?"

Rory grumbled and looked up to an angry Paris.

"Are you finished conversing so I can conduct this meeting?" she asked loudly. "Or do you need a little more time to make kissy faces?"

"Go ahead, Paris," Rory said through gritted teeth. Quickly, she turned back to Jess. "What are you doing here?" she hissed.

"I'm here to be a reporter," Jess joked. "I thought you'd like seeing more of me," he added quickly. "And you told me I'm a great writer. Are you taking that back as well?"

His mouth contorted until it found a perfectly stern look to rest on. Rory looked into his eyes and noticed they were as hard as steel. "Jess…"

"No. Just forget it. I'll sit here and mind my own business." Hastily, he moved the chair away from Rory as she watched.

* * *

"Oh, _Luke!_" Lorelai waved her napkin flirtatiously in the air as she and Rory awaited their evening coffee. When Luke stepped out of the kitchen, he not only looked flustered, he looked out of place. Without a word, he poured their coffee and fled to the depths of the kitchen area.

Rory turned to her mother and looked back at the kitchen opening. "What's wrong with Luke?" she inquired as she sipped her coffee.

Lorelai drank some of her own coffee before she bothered to attempt an answer. "I don't know."

"You're knowledgeable." Rory nodded as she sipped her coffee again.

"Aw jeez!" rang out from the kitchen moments later.

"Do you think he needs help?" Rory asked.

"Probably," Lorelai giggled. "Oh, _Luke!_" she called again.

Again, Luke emerged from the kitchen area. Unlike the first time he had come out that night, Lorelai was able to get a good look at him. He had a pot mitt covering one hand and a dishtowel draped over his shoulder. The blue plaid shirt he was wearing was stained with soot and had been ripped in three different places.

"What happened to you?" Lorelai asked as she grabbed the haphazardly placed dishtowel off his shoulder.

Luke sighed and removed the pot mitt from his hand. "Jess."

"What about Jess?" Rory asked as she studied Luke's expression. He appeared to be worried, but equally as annoyed.

"Oh, the little punk never made it back from Hartford. He's God knows where, off doing God know what," he said angrily.

Lorelai sipped her coffee in thought. "Jess hadn't been acting up until lately. What's wrong all of a sudden?"

Groaning, Rory hid her face in her hands. "And that would be my fault again," she grumbled.

"Well, great! Get him back from Hartford, because I just broke the stupid oven rack and toaster." Without another word, Luke stalked back to the kitchen. Both Gilmore girls cringed as Luke banged something else.

"What is _wrong_ with you and Jess? I haven't seen the two of you so moody since the great book crisis of 1995."

Rory sighed. "It's…complicated. We're drifting, so we're fighting. We're fighting a lot. And it's not constant fighting. He'll do something great, like the drive in movie, then he'll blow me off for a week and expect everything to be the way he left it. So that results in another argument, and we don't talk for a couple of days. We'll still be friendly, yet icy at the same time. _Then_, after not speaking to me, he'll join the stupid paper after years of denying his writing ability and blame me for the lack of support he receives!"

"Breathe, sweets. When did Jess start writing for the Franklin?"

Clutching the handle of her mug and looking directly at Lorelai, Rory answered, "Three weeks ago when school started." She twirled the mug absentmindedly in front of her.

"And he's good?" Lorelai asked.

"He's amazing. Paris put him on the front page for the first issue." Rory looked into the bitter liquid and back at Lorelai.

"Then what's the problem?" she asked.

Rory shrugged. "I don't know. He's becoming distant, more distant than he's ever been. We go to the same school and write for the paper. He drives me to school and sometimes takes me home. That's it. No more take out and movies. No more reading on the bridge. No more bookstores in Hartford followed up by a visit to a coffee shop." Rory sighed. "What did I do to lose him? He won't even go to the stupid town festivals that we always used to go to. What about the other traditions we used to have? What happens when my birthday comes along? Will he remember? Will he take me to the bookstore and let me pick out a book, buy me a coffee, and sit on the bridge while we talk? Is he going to break this, something we've been doing for nine years? What about Halloween? Are we still going to dress up in similar costume themes and beg for candy?" Rory reached up to her eye and rubbed it, smudging her mascara. "What about Thanksgiving? We've always had dinner together. And the first snow! We have a thing for the first snow when we meet and drink hot chocolate under the snow and the stars!" Rory continued babbling.

"Rory…" Lorelai started. She watched Rory rub at her eyes.

"I'm going home for a little while. Make sure Luke is doesn't break anything else," Rory said softly. She knew Lorelai realized she would be camping out at the bridge for a few hours.

Lorelai nodded as Rory shut the door to Luke's behind her. As she drank her own coffee, she tried to think of ways to talk to Luke about Jess and Rory. Before she could get any further in her thoughts, the door swung open and shut angrily. Looking up, Lorelai noticed Jess stalking across the diner. There was a scowl pasted on his face and his hands were in the depths of his leather pockets. He didn't even bother to vocalize his presence to Lorelai, and Jess used to eat her food.

"Jess!" she called out before the opportunity escaped her.

"Lorelai." He acknowledged her and continued on the path to the upstairs apartment.

"Can I talk to you?" she asked.

Jess shrugged. "I don't know. Can you?"

"Don't be a smart ass. Come over here and sit down."

Dutifully, Jess obeyed the command and sat across from Lorelai.

"What's going on with you and Rory?" she asked.

"I don't know," he answered.

"What happened?" she pressed.

"I don't know," he answered again, trying not to sound bored.

"Rory's upset."

"Huh."

Lorelai sighed. "Will you please just tell me what happened?"

Aggravated, Jess slammed his hand on the table. "_Nothing_ happened. There is _nothing_ wrong. Everything is peachy; everyone is peachy," he snarled. He began to head back upstairs when Lorelai picked herself up and chased him up the stairs.

"You two used to be attached by the hip!" she said. "What happened?"

"_Nothing happened!" _Jess turned on his heel and bellowed at Lorelai.

"Then what, Jess? You can fix it, so you can tell me," Lorelai pleaded. She hated seeing Rory in shambles, but she knew Jess came from a broken home. He needed a mother figure, and Lorelai had always tried to be maternal toward Jess. This was one of the times he needed someone female to talk to that wasn't Rory.

"Everything's fine."

"It obviously isn't fine if the only contact you have with Rory is school and the ride to and from!" Lorelai reasoned.

"Oh, don't forget the Franklin. We _love_ that situation." Jess leaned against the doorframe.

"I'm sure whatever happened can be worked out."

"Nothing happened," Jess repeated as he turned the knob to the apartment. Lorelai could tell the end of the conversation was nearing.

"If we could just talk…" Jess slipped inside the apartment and closed the door behind him, leaving Lorelai in the hall.

"No," he said.

"Jess!" Lorelai banged on the door. "Just tell me what's wrong!"

"Fine. Something did happen."

"Jess? Jess!"

Lorelai banged on the door, but did not receive an answer other than the "Jeez!" that rang out from the kitchen downstairs.


	8. Spontaneous

Here's chapter eight! I know this is short, but I think the content near the end will more than make up for it. Or at least, I hope it does!

As usual, thanks to everyone that reviewed the last chapter, especially since it was such a sad turnout: Sophie, ShaolinQueen, Curley-Q, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, Kassandra27, Love.Always.Alice.and.Jasper, FindMeBroken, Java, Jeremy Shane, and Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3. Thanks a bunch. I hope you enjoy this chapter, too!

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. This isn't even my computer.**

* * *

Jess sat quietly in the diner as he watched the snow softly falling. He was supposed to be cleaning up and getting ready to close for the night. It was the second night of Christmas vacation, so Luke didn't mind having him close up late if it were necessary. Luke had surprisingly enough gone out that evening. It was nice to have the place alone and quiet. Jess had even kicked Kirk out at a fairly reasonable time. There was something with that man that ticked him off a bit. Sighing, Jess wiped down the table he was sitting at and continued to stare out the window. It was nearing eleven-thirty as he flipped the lights off and continued to clean up. Jess needed to make sure he kept his eye on the clock. After he finished closing up for the night, he had unspoken plans that he hoped had been kept. It would have been inconvenient if he was running behind schedule tonight. Flicking on the CD player he had placed on the counter, Jess hoped the music would keep him motivated to clean faster. The Clash CD started and the music filled his ears. As quickly as possible, Jess began to tidy up the diner.

* * *

Rory's favorite time of the year was always winter, no matter what. Obviously, her love for the winter, the cold, and the snow was because of Lorelai's own love for it. Rory looked out the window; the ground was coated with a light dusting of snow that sparkled in the moonlight. Her mother had always gone on about how snow was "magical." They had already gone out in the snow for the night. Lorelai had made Rory take their traditional walk around town in snow. Rory peered out her window again, and then turned to check the time on her alarm clock. Midnight was nearing and Lorelai had already headed off to bed. Instead of joining her mother in dreamland, Rory had declined her mother's offer and opted to stay up longer. What Lorelai didn't know was that Rory and Jess had their own tradition, and Rory was waiting to sneak out.

Ever since they were nine years old, which oddly didn't feel like that long ago, Rory and Jess would sneak out and meet during the first snow. Rory slipped her feet into her snow boots and started toward the bridge. Over the last two months, Rory and Jess had made peace with each other. They were nice and friendly and worked amicably together on the paper. Although still good friends, Rory ached for a closer bond. It seemed Jess desired company from other people more often than with her. Rory was glad they were friends, but she hoped that Jess would stop avoiding her soon.

Jess was waiting for her, already sitting on the bridge. Rory plopped down next to him as he pulled a thermos of hot chocolate out of his bag. "Cheers," he said as they bumped thermos mugs and took a long swig. The sweet, chocolate flavor invaded their senses.

"First snow," Rory said.

"Yeah," Jess said simply as he took another sip of his hot chocolate.

They sat silently for a moment. "The snow always seems so romantic. Mom says good things happen when it snows."

"Lorelai does say that," Jess agreed.

"The hot chocolate is different this year. It's extra good," Rory commented before taking another sip from her thermos.

While he nodded in agreement, Jess held his thermos up. "It's raspberry hot chocolate. I made it special for you." It had become a rarity, but Jess followed up his statement with a smile.

They sat in silence once again. Jess scooted closer to Rory on the bridge. A cold wind whipped the snow around them and forced Rory to pull her coat tighter around her body.

"Cold?" Jess asked her. Rory nodded in response. With ease, Jess removed his leather jacket and draped it over Rory's frail shoulders. "Better?" he asked gently. Rory nodded again.

"You won't be cold?" she asked, her voice laced with concern.

"I have two layers on. I'll be fine," he replied softly. "Did you forget I have to give you my jacket every year? I haven't gotten frost bite or died from the cold yet." Jess smirked.

"But you didn't stop for just a moment to think that since I'm eighteen, I'd remember to wear more clothing?"

Jess laughed in response. "Gilmore, that's funny. And besides, I though it was a teenage girl rule to wear less clothing as you get older." With that remark, Jess was able to work a smile out of Rory. After that moment, the silence commenced.

"So."

"So"

"It's snowing."

"I think we've established that, Ror."

"We're getting boring, aren't we? So predictable nowadays, I think," Rory said with a sigh. Inside, she loved their quirks and little traditions such as this. Even with the new, constant pace the best friends had recently developed, there was something lacking.

"Huh. I hadn't noticed."

She missed the spontaneity. They never seemed to do anything new. It has been a while since they had even gotten together outside of school, the Franklin, and the car rides to and from Hartford. Every so often, Jess would join her for a bite to eat at Luke's and sometimes Weston's. "It's the same thing, day in and day out. When have we ever done something different?" she questioned.

"Raspberry hot chocolate," Jess pointed out as he took a long drink from his thermos. "Blech. So much for these things keeping hot stuff actually hot," he scoffed.

"No, Jess! Be serious, I mean it," Rory began to ramble. "Really, we're eighteen. It's already obvious that we've started to drift apart. We're seniors in high school. How is next year going to go if I'm at Harvard and you're not? God, Jess, that's next year! It's so close. If we're like this already, how is next year going to be? Are we still going to be friends? Will we still be best friends? We're already like this during school and college preparations!" Rory continued through Jess's grunt. "When have we ever done anything _really_ out of the ordinary? Something different? Something spontaneous?"

Before Rory could finish her tangent, Jess leaned closer to her and kissed her on the lips. As shocked as she was, Rory sunk deeper into their first kiss as Jess wrapped his arms around her. Rory combed her fingers through his hair as Jess slipped his tongue gently between her lips. After what seemed like hours to Rory, Jess broke the kiss and looked into her eyes.

"Spontaneous like that?" he asked breathlessly and grasped her cold cheeks tenderly with his palms.

Rory didn't care for words at that particular moment. Before Jess could say anything else, she lunged at him and her lips crashed forcefully with his.


	9. What About Us?

I was overwhelmed by the response to my last chapter! I'm so glad that you enjoyed how Rory and Jess get together. This chapter picks up a few minutes after the last chapter ended. The end is a little cheesy, but who doesn't love a little bit of fluff?

Thanks to all my reviewers! I'm glad you loved the last chapter: _Java, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, Curley-Q, ShaolinQueen, Sophie, GothicSorceressRikku15, watergurl123, FindMeBroken, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, lillitgirlx2, Kassandra27, Environmentalist, princessdeleon, JESSandRORYforever, kathi-ryn, Love.Always.Alice.and.Jasper, lukkygrl08, Jeremy Shane, MielAngelEyes, CherryWolf713 and GrlWithoutAName._ Thanks. : )

**Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing. What a surprise.**

* * *

"Hi," Jess whispered as he stroked Rory's cheek affectionately. 

"Hi," Rory whispered back.

They were still sitting on the bridge. By now, it was covered in a feathery bed of snow. Rory looked into friend's chocolate eyes. She had never seen his eyes so submissive and gentle before. Even when they were young kids, the primary emotion she could usually spot was resent and sometimes even anger. Jess ran his fingers through Rory's hair and chewed lightly on his lip. She was studying him

"It's almost one in the morning," Jess said.

"Maybe we should head back," Rory responded as she leaned back on the snowy bridge.

Jess helped Rory to her feet and they started toward the Gilmore house. It was still lightly snowing as they walked around town. Their feet crunched the freshly fallen snow as they walked. Jess slipped his fingers between Rory's. She had always wondered what holding his hand would feel like. Since her gloves were tucked away in her pocket, she ran her fingers over his smooth palms. Rory loved that Jess had soft, smooth hands. She looked into his eyes again.

"This is my stop," Rory said after they spent five minutes standing outside.

Nodding, Jess leaned in and kissed Rory on the lips. "I'll see you later?" he asked.

A blush spread across Rory's cheeks as she kissed Jess in return. It was an odd sensation. Rory never thought she would be able to kiss Jess. "Of course," she responded. Jess lingered outside for a moment as Rory snuck back inside her house.

Although almost ready to scream in delight, Rory flopped onto her bed and hugged her pillow tightly. She had no idea how to react to the events of the night. She knew she should be happy, thrilled, elated. Rory was all of the above, but there was something missing. As she clutched her pillow, she drifted off to sleep with her insides raging.

* * *

"Oh darling daughter! Fruit of my loins!" Lorelai called from the kitchen. 

Rory stirred and looked at her alarm clock. It was almost eleven in the morning. From her bedroom, she could smell the coffee brewing outside her door. Hurriedly, Rory slipped on fresh clothes before emerging in the kitchen.

Lorelai sat at the table with two mugs of coffee steaming in front of her. "Good morning," she said brightly.

Rory groaned and snatched her cup of coffee from her mother. After a few gulps of the bitter coffee, Rory placed her mug in front of her and looked at Lorelai. "I have something to tell you."

Lorelai toyed with the handle on her mug as she waited for Rory to continue. "Okay," she said, hoping to initiate the next words.

"Jess kissed me last night," Rory squeaked out.

Lorelai smiled. It had been a long time coming. Eventually, she knew Rory and Jess would get together. "So what's happening with the two of you?"

Rory chewed on the side of her mouth. "I'm not sure. We talked a little, but not about us. I don't know what's going on. It's killing me."

"Maybe you should go over and talk to Jess. The whole reason you were in a bit of a funk was that Jess was afraid to be emotional toward you. He's obviously over that hump now if he kissed you last night." Lorelai smiled. Although she was tentative around Jess sometimes, she couldn't help but like him. He had a hard life before he was dumped in Stars Hollow. Jess was only eight when Liz shipped him off to Luke and abandoned him. Any eight year old would be in pain after that. Occasionally, he still rebelled. As he grew older, his outbursts became more frequent. Lorelai supposed it came with the age. Over all, Jess was a good kid. He was smart, and Rory was guiding him in life. Luke cited Rory as one of the only reasons Jess decided to attend Chilton. She had taught him to desire learning.

"Mom, are you okay?" Rory asked, breaking Lorelai's train of thought.

Brushing the hairs away that had fallen in her face, Lorelai looked up at Rory. "I'm fine. Just thinking. You should go see Jess and talk," she said.

Rory nodded and finished that last drop of her coffee before it welded to the bottom of her cup. "I'll be back later," Rory promised.

"Tell me everything!" Lorelai requested as Rory prepared to leave.

"Believe me, I will," Rory said as she slipped her jacket on. She wondered what last night meant to Jess as she walked to the diner. Rory had caught glimpses of the many girls Jess had kissed. He had even gotten as far as to have sex with some of them. Jess was far more experienced that Rory was. She hoped last night meant as much to him as it did to her.

The diner was fairly empty as Rory walked in. Luke was standing behind the counter flipping through a pile of bills. Rory felt bad interrupting him, so she sat on a stool and read while she waited for him to finish. It took him only a moment to notice Rory sitting in front of him. "Rory. Do you want some coffee?"

"Hi, Luke." Rory closed her book and looked up at Luke. "I just came to see Jess. Is he here?"

"Yeah. He's asleep. You could have just gone up," Luke said.

"I just wanted to say hi." Rory hopped off the stool and grabbed her book.

The stairs seemed steeper and the hallway seemed longer. Rory stood outside the office door for a moment before knocking lightly and pushing it open. Jess was still sprawled in bed. His hair was sticking out in different directions and he was snoring. Laughing, Rory attempted to wake Jess up. Before she could realize Jess had stopped snoring, he grabbed her and pulled the blankets over both of them.

"Hi," he greeted her before placing a tender kiss on her lips.

Immediately, Rory blushed. Jess snuck his arm behind Rory's neck and she looked up at him. Smiling, Rory proceeded to kiss him back. While under the blankets with Jess, Rory felt comfortable. She snuggled closer to his warm body and sighed. "We should talk," she whispered.

"Okay," he agreed. They sat up in his small bed and fluffed the pillows. "This is weird," he said.

"What's weird?" Rory asked.

"That we're sitting here talking and I'm wearing boxers." Jess smirked.

"Jess!" Rory blushed and hit him with a pillow.

"I'm going to put pants on." Jess climbed out of the bed. Unintentionally, Rory looked him up and down. She had never seen Jess so scantily clad. As kids, they would hardly ever go swimming and Jess would not touch a pair of shorts with a ten-foot pole. Yet there he was, standing in front of her with boxers on.

"You're killing me, Gilmore. Stop looking at my ass," Jess requested as he began to pull on a pair of jeans.

Rory blushed. "I wasn't! I didn't…I," she stuttered defensively as he turned to face her.

Jess buttoned his jeans and zipped the fly as he watched Rory squirm. Rory continued to blush as he threaded his belt through the loops. "Were we going to talk?" he asked, buckling the belt.

Rory nodded, but continued to blush. "What about us?"

"What about us?" Jess asked her.

"You know," Rory stammered.

Jess smirked and sat back down on the bed. "What do you think?"

"What do I think about what?" Rory asked.

"About us?"

Rory sunk back into the pillows. She wasn't sure if Jess was making any sense.

"About us being an us?" Jess asked as he sunk down next to her.

"You and me?" Rory asked. "Together?"

"Well, I was waiting for the right girl," Jess said softly. He smiled, knowing that Rory had been the one all along.

"You're so cheesy, Jess Mariano."

"Only this once," he promised, kissing his first girlfriend on the lips.


	10. Secrets and Surprises

Here's chapter ten! Happy reading. : )

Thanks to all my reviewers of chapter nine: **DiehardJavaJunkie, 14****FindMeBroken, ****kathi-ryn, ****CherryWolf713, ****gilmorefanforever, ****JessRoryYunaTidusforever, ****S.Mariano, ****lillitgirlx2, ****brittXblc, ****JESSandRORYforever****, Love.Always.Alice.and.Jasper., ****starletelena, ****blonde-biatch, ****ShaolinQueen, ****Kassandra27, ****lukkygrl08, ****imcck, ****GrlWithoutAName, ****GothicSorceress, Rikku15, ****Curley-Q****, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, ****Jeremy Shane, ****CountryPersonel, ****Environmentalist, and ****mizskitles220.**

Disclaimer: I really don't own Gilmore Girls. Get it? Got it? Good.

* * *

Lorelai sat sipping her coffee as Luke perched next to her on a stool. "Hey, wrong side of the counter," she joked. 

Luke sighed. "I just wanted to talk," he said.

"Oh, really?" Lorelai asked, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. "About what?"

"Rory and Jess. They're _kissing!_" he said, hissing under his breath. It sounded so odd before he said it, but even weirder when the words actually came out of his mouth. He should have figured the two friends would get together eventually, he just didn't think it would be so soon. Before, he had been all for the change of events. Now, he was a little leery of the situation.

"I know," Lorelai said. "It's been a week. I have a jubilant daughter that tells me everything."

"Right…so. Okay. Everything's good then?" Luke asked.

"Uh, I don't know. Why are you acting so awkward?" Lorelai asked.

"Oh, me? Awkward? No. It's not awkward at all to walk in on your nephew and his "best friend" making out on the couch. Jeez. I sit on that couch. I need to burn it."

Lorelai began laughing.

"What?" Luke asked as she continued.

"Okay, you just used air quotes and plotted to set fire to a piece of furniture. What's wrong with two friends becoming something more?" she defended.

"Nothing!" Luke sputtered. "I just wish they'd stop becoming something more on my couch. You know, the couch I watch television on. I can't sit there anymore! Do you want to trade couches?" he asked.

Lorelai burst out laughing again. "You're joking, right?" she asked as she took another sip of coffee.

"I'm serious! Stop laughing!"

"Luke, I'm sure worse things have happened on your couch than mine. If you really want to get rid of it, you're better off burning it that trying to pass it off on me!" Luke looked at Lorelai. He was utterly confused, but he supposed it was a normal conversation for them.

Lorelai winked at Luke and he suddenly made the connection. "Do you have a lighter?" he asked.

Lorelai shook her head and laughed. "No, but Jess might have one!"

He ran upstairs and Lorelai hid by the curtain to spy. She heard the office door open followed by, "Jeez! You two are like bunnies!" Attempting to stifle her laugh was not working. An embarrassed and blushing Rory dashed down the stairs.

"Mom! What's wrong with Luke?" she asked.

"Hang on, shhh." Lorelai covered Rory's mouth with her hand.

"I can't believe you had sex on my couch!" Luke roared. "I sit there! Hell, I dropped a cashew on the cushion last night and didn't hesitate to eat it!"

Giggling, Rory asked, "Luke found out about Jess and what he and those girls used to do up there?"

"Guess so."

"Want to listen a little longer?"

"Of course!"

"No! End of discussion! You had sex on my couch!"

* * *

"First day back," Jess said as Rory climbed into his car. 

"Yeah. Weird." She scrunched her nose up. "I'm excited, though."

"Lots of things have...changed, haven't they?" he asked, smiling at Rory for confirmation.

Briefly, she nodded and gave him a quick kiss.

Jess had not been this happy in a long time. When he looked back on it, he realized he might never have been this happy. If he was ever happy as a child, he owed it all to Rory. Whenever he was acting like a grouch, she would call him on it. Rory Gilmore tried to make him a better person when she was eight. He supposed on some level, she succeeded. Jess was not what he would consider a "good kid." At thirteen, he smoked his first cigarette. When he was fourteen, he drank his first beer at a party. Fifteen brought his first taste of tequila and his first trip to "third base." Age sixteen brought sex with two different girls, while seventeen added another. Reflecting on his past, Jess wondered how he was able to keep a decent relationship with Luke and a remarkable friendship with Rory.

Rory taught him simple things, like how to enjoy school. When he first started skipping, she made sure he came to class. Eventually, Jess stopped trying to miss school and actually applied himself. Ultimately, Rory helped him into Chilton. While he was stereotypical in every other department, he was a good student with a bad image. His SAT verbal ranked higher than Rory's…almost perfect with a 790.

Jess zoomed back into the present as he looked over at Rory. They weren't just friends anymore. She was his. He didn't need to go from girl to girl from companionship any longer. Jess was where he wanted to be now. There was no need to change anything.

"I have something to tell you," Jess said, trying to contain the jitters in his stomach.

"What?" Rory asked, sensing his excitement.

"I sent my application into Harvard," he said, smiling.

The hot coffee ejected from her mouth automatically. "You got, you…what?"

"Harvard application," he said slowly.

"Really?" she squeaked. Rory couldn't believe Jess was not only applying to a prestigious school, but the Ivy League school she had wanted to attend since age five.

"Yup. I thought I would try. You're always telling me how smart I am when I apply myself. I'm just giving it a go. Just because I'm filling out an application doesn't mean I'll get accepted or be able to attend." Jess turned his attention to the road and shifted the gear to drive.

"I'm proud of you," Rory said as she sipped her coffee again. It seemed like a natural picture in her head. She could imagine both of them at Harvard. They would read together, eat together, study together. The image in her mind was pleasant enough to cause a smile.

* * *

Per usual, Jess and Rory sat at lunch reading their books while they ate. The only thing different about their current lunch period was that they were sitting next to each other instead of across from each other. Nonchalantly, Jess moved his idle hand to rest on Rory's bare knee. It was a simple gesture, but it made Rory smile and then blush. For the whole day, they had avoided putting themselves out in the public Chilton eye. The last thing either of the needed was any publicity, especially because of their placements on the Franklin. Once Paris got wind of the "situation," she would absolutely flip. Although Rory and Paris had been on good terms recently, Jess and Paris were always at each other's throats. Rory was sure Paris wouldn't take the news of their relationship lightly or seriously. Countless times before, Paris had voiced her concerns of their already tumultuous relationship. No one else seemed to think that a romance between two members of the Franklin staff would affect anything; then again, Paris constantly seemed to jump to obnoxious conclusions. 

Rory thought about the lunch period while they waited for the Franklin meeting to start. She knew Paris was going to launch the meeting by grilling the staff about their articles. Instead, when she entered the room, she headed straight for her vice president and Jess.

"Gilmore. Mariano. See me in my office." Her voice was stone cold as she beckoned for them to stand. Quickly, the two exchanged looks as Paris lead them to her desk.

"I heard through the "grape vine" that my vice president here is dating you, Mariano. I'm not sure what to think of this arrangement."

"I'm not sure it's up to you," Jess snarled.

Rory slapped his knee gently. "Shush."

"I don't know what to do with the two of you, but I definitely can't have this paper run by emotions. It was hard enough to have my vice president on the staff, but now the vice president is on the paper with her boyfriend." Paris paced in front of them while the rest of the staff attempted to eavesdrop.

"Paris," Rory started. "Is it possible to stop referring to me as you vice president and call me by name?" It ticked her off that "Rory" was not usually what Paris called her. Most of the times, she called her "Gilmore" and "vice president."

"_Rory_, what I'm saying is that you can't put me in a compromising position."

"Please elaborate."

"People are going to get the wrong idea. They already think I'm biased. An abundance of your articles hit the front page. When they see that Jess is making the front page, they'll make the connection and condemn me as an editor! I'll never continue on to the New York Times!"

"Paris, breathe. Jess already makes the front page. You paste his articles there because of the pure genius of his writing. I know you'd put his short stories under the fold if you could." Rory patted her friend's shoulder. "You're overreacting. These "tyrants" are not going to bring you down."

"Are you certain?" Paris asked.

"Very certain." Rory nodded. "Now go start the meeting so we can assemble the next issue."

"Wouldn't want to be attacked for anything else," Paris said as she dashed to the front to call the meeting to order.

Jess sighed. "She needs a man."


	11. Jess is College Bound

I became enthusiastic about this chapter during driver's Ed, so I had to finish it.

Other than that, here's a rather **important** author's note. This chapter is where a lot of the alternate universe material kicks in. Obviously, before this, you learned that Liz dropped Jess off in Stars Hollow at age eight, where he and Rory became friends. Honestly, that's not the whole AU material. Now, there's a domino effect. If you knock one wall over, another one tips as well. BECAUSE Rory and Jess have been friends for so long, Rory's innocence and good influence have affected Jess. You'll see a major change in him as opposed to the show. This is just a forewarning. Alternate universe basically takes over from here, but what's fanfiction without a bit of AU?

As always, thanks to my chapter ten reviewers!: DiehardJavaJunkie14, CherryWolf713, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, coffeeheart, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, Jeremy Shane, lukkygrl08, ShaolinQueen, Curley-Q, gilmorefanforever, princessdeleon, GothicSorceressRikku15, Environmentalist, lillitgirlx2, Love.Always.Alice.and.Jasper, and JESSandRORYforever. Thanks for your reviews!

Disclaimer: It will never be mine. There. Admitting it is the first step to recovery!

* * *

"Jess, I think we need to have a talk," Luke said softly as Jess looked up from his book.

"Yeah?"

"You don't share much with me," Luke said. "I'm okay with that. You're eighteen, and you're closed up. I was eighteen once, so I understand." Luke noticed Jess roll his eyes discreetly. "That's not what I wanted to talk about, though."

Jess closed his book to focus more on Luke. "What's wrong?" he asked. It wasn't often Luke attempted to initiate a conversation, and this seemed to be a heavy topic.

"I got a call from Headmaster Charleston," Luke started.

"I didn't do it," Jess said, dismissing Luke in favor of the book once more. He had been well behaved at Chilton, but he wouldn't be surprised if blame had been thrown at him again.

"No, that's not it. He mentioned that you're third in your class right now." Jess put the book aside.

"Third?" he inquired, squinting at Luke to see if he heard correctly.

"I just wanted to tell you that I'm proud," Luke said.

"I'm third in my class?" Jess asked again.

"He said you're definitely college bound with a 4.1 and a 1530 SAT score. I want you to go to college," Luke said.

"I applied. I sent everything in already," Jess said smugly. "You don't have to lecture me about college. Rory convinced me to go a long time ago."

"I know, and I'm glad you applied already. I'm just surprised where you sent your applications," Luke mentioned.

"Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Vassar, and Columbia. Is there something wrong with my choices?" Jess asked.

"NO!" Luke said quickly. "I think the jump from one prestigious school to another is great. I would love to see you and Rory at Harvard together. Yale is close, and still a great school." Luke noticed the scowl that had overtaken his nephew's features. "What's wrong?"

"I didn't list the schools up by choice. I applied to Harvard because I knew it would make Rory happy. You're right; Yale's nice and close to home."

"I feel a but coming," Luke said.

"But I'd much rather go to Stanford, Vassar, or Columbia," Jess said meekly.

"That's fine. I never said you couldn't go to school far away. Listen, Jess, I don't have a ton of money like some families at Chilton, but college is covered. It will be tight for a while, but I want to do this for you."

"Jeez, Luke," Jess said as he raked his hands through his thick hair. "You're paying for Chilton, and I know that isn't cheap. How are you going to swing an Ivy League school?"

Luke sighed. Jess could tell he was hesitant to release any information to him. "When you were nine, I started an account for you. I knew if Liz didn't get you in a year, you were going to be my kid. I wanted you to be great, and I wanted you to get an education. I didn't get to go to college, but I knew you were smart and hard working when you wanted to be. Every month I stuck some money away in your account that I could have spent on things I wanted. By the time the acceptance letter from Chilton arrived, there was enough money to cover the tuition. Don't get me wrong, I'm not well off, but I can afford to send you through college. I would love for you to pick up some scholarships, though. Four years is a long time and a lot of money."

Jess stared at his cheap Wal-mart socks. There really was a reason for everything. Luke never bought anything name brand, and it took destruction of clothing for him to buy anything new. His uncle had given up a comfortable lifestyle for him. Chilton was a lot of money, and Jess knew an Ivy League college like Columbia would be even more expensive. At first, he didn't know what to say. There were times in his life when he had been snide and ungrateful towards Luke. Now, he felt sorry and realized how much Luke sacrificed for him. Gnawing on his lip, Jess looked up at Luke. He was hunched down in the chair waiting for Jess to say something.

"Thanks, Luke." He smiled. "You've given me everything, even when I wasn't your responsibility. I promise I'll make you proud."

"I know you will," Luke said, standing up. "I'm going downstairs to close," he said.

"I'll do it," Jess said. "You have an early delivery, so you should go to bed." He smiled at Luke with insistence, leaving before he could refuse.

Luke sighed and sat on the edge of his bed. He had done a good job with raising Jess, and he would be sorry to see his nephew go.

* * *

"Hey, you," Rory said softly as she climbed on her usual stool. Jess was finishing his homework as the last customers of the night finished up their meals.

Jess leaned over the counter and kissed Rory on the lips. "How was Friday night dinner?" he asked. She looked beautiful. Her hair was curly and her dress hugged her body in all the right places. Quickly, he tore his eyes from her and continued to examine his calculus homework.

"It's Friday night dinner. There was fighting, a bit of yelling, and by the way, you're coming to dinner next week," Rory sputtered quickly.

"That's nice. It sounds like…" Jess paused to absorb her words. "WHAT?"

A blush spread across Rory's face as the tip of his pencil crushed in the middle of writing the number five. "My grandparents want you to come for dinner next week."

"Why?" Jess asked as he examined the broken pencil.

"They want to meet you," she said shyly.

"They already know me," Jess said as he manually sharpened the yellow pencil. "And in case you didn't remember, they hate me."

"Oh, that's not true," Rory said as she played with her sleeve. Jess glanced at her and raised his eyebrow. "Okay, yeah. They hate you. But that's not the point!"

Sighing, Jess squeezed Rory's mouth playfully to make her lips pucker. She giggled while he attempted to kiss her. "Do you think they'll remember me when you introduce me as your boyfriend?"

Laughing, Rory pulled his hand off her face. "They have met you before, remember?"

"Yeah, but I was younger. I've changed," Jess said.

"You're taller, your voice is deeper, and your hair is messier. That doesn't constitute a change."

"Ah, but I won't steal the scotch this time," Jess pointed out.

"Oh, I almost forgot about that. They're going to remember you as the tipsy fifteen year old hoodlum." Rory started fidgeting with her sleeve again. "That's not good."

"Richard won't remember that. He was away on business that time," Jess mentioned.

"That's right. Grandpa hasn't seen you since you were ten years old. You might actually have a chance to make a new impression." Rory smiled. "There's hope for you after all!"

"Next Friday. I'll just double check my schedule with Luke. Don't worry, your grandparents can "meet" me," Jess joked as he finished the last problem on his worksheet.

Rory eyed the complex worksheet from his advanced placement calculus class. Jess was extremely smart, and that was a hard fact to deny. "Why are you here doing homework? It's Friday." Usually Jess was around town somewhere with a few friends. Friday night while she was at dinner was his time to do things he knew she wouldn't approve of, such as smoking and drinking with his buddies.

"I was going out, but then Luke caught me off guard by telling me about a call from Headmaster Charleston." Jess slipped his worksheet in his blue folder and grabbed a textbook from under the counter.

"_Jessss,"_ she hissed.

"Nothing bad. Actually, really good." As he spoke, Jess started thumbing through his psychics textbook.

"What did he want?" Rory asked.

"To tell Luke I'm third in the senior class with a 4.1 GPA."

"Really?" Rory asked excitedly.

"Yeah, he was all proud of me and then told me he'd been saving money for my college education since I was nine years old. Apparently, he put money aside every month and skimped on his essentials," Jess said.

"Wow. That's so incredible for Luke to do," Rory said under her breath. It really was great for Jess, which was why Rory berated herself for the inappropriate jealousy she was feeling. Jess had a way to pay for college, while she and Lorelai lacked the money for Harvard.

"I guess there was a reason for the socks with the holes in them and the generic store band cereal. I used to be horrible to Luke when I was a kid, and he had money to send me to Chilton and now college," Jess said wistfully, playing with his pen cap.

"Luke understands," Rory said.

"But he shouldn't have to, that's the thing," Jess argued. "Luke thinks I'm a decent person now. I guess he is right on some level. I felt really bad about being a horrible kid, so I told him I would close up tonight. I don't think he meant to guilt trip me with that chat, but something clicked. It's time for me to be responsible," Jess reasoned as he began to scan the page in his book.

"Jess, I like this side of you. I love that you're dependable and caring. I think it's really great that you're third in the class and applying to Harvard." Rory smiled. "You never cease to amaze me, and you really shouldn't feel guilty when it comes to Luke. He'd ship you right back to your mother if he was bothered by you, and you know it."

"Thanks." Jess leaned across the counter and kissed Rory again. "For what it's worth, I think you're amazing too."

"Stop being such a sap, Mariano."

"Hey, you started it," he joked. "I'll pick you up at seven tomorrow?" he asked. "I'm doing this homework now so I won't have to rush it later."

"You're outdoing me," Rory laughed, jumping off the stool.

"I'll try to stop," Jess replied, looking up from his notebook.

Rory turned around to yank the door open, letting her skirt swish around her knees. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Lorelai was waiting for Rory when she exited the diner. "How's Jess? Did he respond well to the dinner invitation?"

"He promised to not drink any scotch this time around, so I think we're good."

"Good." Lorelai nodded. "He does know this means direct contact with Emily and Richard Gilmore?"

"I'm sure he realized that's what dinner entails," Rory shot back.

"Right. So, how are things going with the two of you?" Lorelai asked as she unlocked the Jeep.

"It's perfect," Rory said. "Did you know he's third in the senior class?"

"No way! Jess? The hoodlum that got drunk off scotch at your grandparents house, glued Taylor's cans together, and skipped most of eighth grade?" asked Lorelai as she shifted the car from park to drive.

"That's the one," Rory said. "Hey, mom?"

"Yeah?"

"I think I love him."


	12. Friday Night Insults

Here's the Friday Night Dinner chapter. Don't worry, everything gets better in chapter thirteen.

Thanks to everyone that reviewed chapter eleven: CherryWolf713, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, ShaolinQueen, DiehardJavaJunkie14, XxXDrama QueenXxX, Jeremy Shane, kathi-ryn, Environmentalist, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, Meg, lukkygrl08, Curley-Q, GothicSorceressRikku15, JESSandRORYforever, lillitgirlx2, blonde.biatch, Love.Always.Alice.and.Jasper, gilmorefanforever, and Lucille Mabel.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Pinkie swear.

* * *

Jess straightened his tie in the mirror. The tie he usually wore with his Chilton uniform was always crooked, and Rory usually had to assist him with it. For some reason, he just couldn't get this one to lay flat.

"Having a little trouble?" Luke asked from the doorway.

Jess grunted and threw the tie on the floor. It landed by Luke's foot. "Just nervous," Jess said as he leaned over to pick up the stubborn tie.

"It's not the first time you've met them," Luke said as he started working the knot out of his nephew's tie.

"Too bad. I need a fresh start," Jess said as he watched Luke's fingers take the knot apart.

"That right. Scotch, wasn't it?"

"Why does_ everyone_ have to remember that?" Jess asked, scowling as Luke popped his collar up to put the tie around his neck.

"If anyone is going to remember the scotch incident, it would me. You were the one puking all over my apartment." Luke fumbled with the tie before successfully pulling it through. "There," he said, smoothing down the collar. "Now the Gilmores might mistake you for a gentleman."

"Sure. They'll fall for that hook, line, and sinker." Jess rolled his eyes and pulled the sports coat off the back of the kitchen chair.

"Jess," Luke started.

"Yeah?"

"Just don't get in any trouble, okay?" Luke said under his breath. Jess shot him a look. "I mean it. Your vomit is a hazard. I'm never cleaning up after you again."

"Throw up on someone else's floor? Got it." Jess smirked and stood by the door. Luke glared at him. "Club soda, please, thank you, I'm applying to Harvard." Jess smiled and slipped out the door.

* * *

"You want to do the honors?" Lorelai joked as the three of them stood in front of the Gilmore house. Jess stood still for a moment before stepping forward and ringing the bell.

The shaky maid answered the door wordlessly and took their coats. "Mr. and Mrs. Gilmore are in the living room," she whispered.

"Lorelai, Rory! Come sit," Emily said. Richard approached the drink cart while Emily ushered the three guests to the couches.

"What can I get for you to drink?" Richard asked.

"The usual gin martini," Lorelai responded as she smoothed her dress out to sit.

"Club soda, please," Rory answered, sitting down next to Jess.

A pause in the flow of dialogue caused Jess to look up. "Young man?" Richard prompted.

"Oh, um. Club soda for me too. Sir." Jess rubbed his sweaty palms together. "Please," he added feebly as an after thought.

"Gin martini." Richard handed Lorelai her drink. "And two club sodas." Jess and Rory accepted their glasses as Richard headed back from the drink cart once more.

"Rory," Richard started. "Have you heard back on any of your college applications?"

Rory traced her finger around the edge of her glass. "Not yet, Grandpa. I'll probably hear back in a couple of months. My applications were only due at the beginning of the month."

"That's right, Richard. It's only January," Emily reminded him.

Jess snuck a peek at his watch before he sipped the club soda. There were only five minutes left in the awkward drink session. He was aware that dinner started promptly at seven.

The silence continued until the maid stepped into the living room a few minutes later. "Dinner is ready, Mrs. Gilmore."

"Thank you, Daria." Emily placed her glass on the table and started heading into the dining room.

"Lucinda," the maid corrected.

"Excuse me?" Emily asked, turning around.

"Lucinda. My name is Lucinda, not Daria," she said.

"Well, isn't that nice," Emily said. "Go bring out the salads.

"Jess, Rory tells me you were thinking about attending UConn for college," Richard started.

"Can't you attack Jess later?" Lorelai asked. "We just sat down at the table."

"It's fine," Jess said, fingering the fringe on his cloth napkin. "No, I didn't apply to UConn," Jess corrected.

"I thought it was a bit underneath a Chilton student," Richard continued. "You do still attend Chilton, don't you?"

"Yes, Grandpa," Rory answered for Jess. "You didn't apply to UConn?" she asked, turning to Jess.

"Nope. I didn't apply to UConn," Jess clarified again.

"Why not?" Emily asked as she started the salad Lucinda placed in front of her.

"I decided I didn't want to attend a state school," Jess answered.

"So you didn't apply to Southern Connecticut State either?" Rory asked. "When were you planning on telling me?"

Jess shrugged. "Eventually."

"Where did you apply to college?" Richard pressed.

"Oh, um," Jess paused to chew the tomato in his mouth. "A few prestigious schools."

"You're that confident in your grades?" Emily asked.

"Grandma, Jess is third in the senior class," Rory cut in before Jess could answer.

"That's impressive," Richard said. An approving tone had finally taken over his voice. "How is your grade point average, Jess?"

"It's a 4.1 right now, sir. As long as I can stay ahead in my advanced placement calculus class, I should be able to maintain it for the rest of the year."

"What about SAT scores?" Richard asked excitedly.

"1530, sir."

"1530?" Richard exchanged glances with Emily. "That's almost as high as Rory's."

Emily looked at Jess from her end of the table. She was trying to find something wrong with him, and Rory could tell. "Do you still smoke?" she finally asked.

"Grandma!" Rory exclaimed.

"It's a perfectly fine question, Rory. I just want to get to know your friend here."

"Boyfriend," Rory corrected.

"Oh, that's right. You're now romantically involved with the scotch drinking hoodlum," Emily replied tartly. Jess clenched his teeth together until jaw began to hurt. He should have known Emily Gilmore would throw that mistake in his face.

"This is Jess. That's right. He was the drunk boy you informed me of," Richard said.

"Come on, can't we eat dinner in peace?" Lorelai pleaded. "Jess made some mistakes, but he's grown up."

"All I see is a taller, messier haired hoodlum with a deeper voice. That does not mean a different person!" Emily raised her voice.

"Grandma, please," Rory pleaded as she put her fork down.

"He even failed to mention his withdrawal from state schools to Rory. What kind of a boyfriend refuses to confide in their girlfriend? He doesn't even have enough money to attend a prestigious school!"

"That's it!" Jess slammed his fist on the dining room table, causing the china to bounce and suspend over the table for a split second.

"Young man! Richard snapped.

"No! I'm sick of the subtle insults. I do not deserve to be treated like this. I'm third in my class, and I applied to Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Stanford, and Vassar. It doesn't matter that my uncle runs a diner! He saved up enough money in a fund to send me to college!" Jess stood up and threw his napkin on his plate. "I don't need to deal with another round of condescending insults."

"Then I suggest you leave. You're no longer welcome in this house," Emily snapped.

"Lorelai, I'll take a bus back. Thank you for the invitation." Jess pushed his chair in and headed to the foyer for his coat.

"Jess, wait!" Rory got up from her place at the table to go after him.

"Rory!" Lorelai called after her.

"Lorelai! You can't walk out on dinner like this!" Emily protested.

"Fine. But I'm giving my daughter permission to." Lorelai dug her car keys out of her bag. "Here," she said, tossing the keys to Rory. "Take Jess home and come back for me."

"Okay." Rory grabbed her jacket and escaped out the door with Jess.

"That was rude to attack Jess like that," Lorelai said as she started her dinner.

"It was rude of him to raise his voice," Emily said.

"You started it," Lorelai said under her breath.

* * *

"Are you okay?" Rory asked as she pulled onto the highway. She had given Jess a few minutes to cool off before starting a conversation.

"Fine."

Rory concentrated on the road while Jess slumped in his seat. "I didn't think they would attack you like that," she said softly.

"Just drop it Rory. It doesn't matter."

"It does! They don't get it. Grandpa really liked you before Grandma had to slander you."

"It doesn't matter," Jess said as he looked out the passenger window.

"No. It does. Jess, come on. Talk to me," Rory requested. She waited a moment in complete silence. "When were you going to tell me about the state schools?" she asked softly.

"After I was accepted somewhere big. At least then you and everyone else would be proud of me," Jess said uninterestedly.

"I am proud of you," Rory said. "You're third in the class. That's great."

"Can we just not talk about this? Thanks." Jess folded his arms and gazed over at Rory. She wore a dejected expression on her face. "I'm sorry," he mumbled.

"It's okay."

They were silent until Rory pulled the Jeep in front of Luke's Diner. "I'll be back later," she said.

Jess left the door open and tried to figure out what to say back to her, but Rory yanked the gear to drive again. Without saying anything, Jess slammed the door and watched as Rory sped out of Star's Hollow.

Luke was waiting for him when he traipsed upstairs. He wordlessly yanked the tie off and tossed it aside. Luke was about to say something when Jess undid his belt and then flung his pants on the floor. He then unbuttoned his shirt and threw it on top of his clothing pile. Without one word, Jess slid under his rumpled sheets and pulled the covers over his head.

"Ladies and gentlemen, Jess Mariano!" Luke joked.

"Shut up," the muffled voice called from under the blankets.


	13. No Touching

Warning: this chapter could potentially live up to its PG-13 rating.

Thank you everyone who reviewed the last chapter: DiehardJavaJunkie14, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, Jeremy Shane, GrlWithoutAName, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, mizskitles220, Meg, CherryWolf713, ShaolinQueen, kathi-ryn, RoRyJeSsAdDiCt, Curley-Q, Love.Always.Alice.and.Jasper, JESSandRORYforever, Lucille Mabel, FindMeBroken, gilmorefanforever, and GothicSorceressRikku15.

Disclaimer: Nothing is mine.

* * *

"Lorelai, I have a right to express my opinions on the boys Rory dates," Emily said as she sipped her wine. 

"You don't have a right to tear them apart limb by limb at the dinner table! We would consider your opinions if they were a bit more subtle and not quite as degrading!"

"Don't raise your voice to me," Emily ordered.

The doorbell chimed. "That must be Rory. It's about time," Lorelai mumbled.

"Mom! Let's go!" Rory stood in the doorway with the keys in her hand.

"We were having a conversation, Rory," Emily said bitterly.

"No, we weren't," Lorelai disagreed. I was griping at you and you were reprimanding me."

Emily raised her voice. "Lorelai."

"Don't start, Mom. You've damaged enough people tonight." Lorelai stalked off to the foyer to fetch her jacket. "How's Jess doing?" she asked.

"He's doing okay. He's a little standoffish and quiet, but it's natural seeing as how he was unnecessarily attacked."

"That's quite enough!" Emily remarked as she ventured into the foyer where Lorelai was putting her jacket on.

"Now what?" Lorelai asked.

"Now what?" Emily barked. "Do you not see how you've trained your daughter to resent me?"

"It would be harder to resent you if you didn't verbally attack my boyfriend," Rory snapped.

"I was only trying to get to know him," Emily reasoned.

"Sure, because it was just an innocent little questionnaire that you harmlessly gave." Rory folded her arms.

"He's unclean, Rory. I need to help you pass up the bad boys," Emily said.

"He's not unclean, and he certainly isn't bad. Did you hear him say anything at all? He has a 4.1 and a 1530 SAT score. Jess applied to three Ivy League schools and two other extremely selective, prestigious schools!" Rory raised her voice with each sentence.

"Don't raise your voice to me!" Emily exclaimed harshly. She turned to Lorelai. "See what you're teaching your daughter?"

"At least she doesn't make Jess curl into the fetal position after one conversation! You're so unfair, Grandma. You don't give anyone a change before you deem whether or not they're good enough by your standards. It shouldn't matter than Jess doesn't have much money, or that he will be forced the get a steady job to help pay for college. He is a good person, Grandma. He's smart and sweet and good to me!" Rory had already started yelling, which caused both of the elder Gilmores to stare at her.

"I think it's best to leave now," Lorelai spoke up as she grabbed Rory's arm. "Come on."

Emily stood dumbstruck in the foyer as Lorelai dragged Rory out the door, slamming it behind her.

"What was that, kid?" she asked as soon as they pulled away from the Gilmore house.

"I hate that she's trying to run my life," Rory said.

"I know. I tried talking to her while you were gone. Emily Gilmore doesn't like to be wrong, and she doesn't change her perception of people easily." Lorelai looked over at crestfallen daughter. "Do you want to stop by Luke's for some coffee and chili fries?"

"Sure," Rory said quietly, slumping in her seat.

* * *

It was almost eleven o'clock on the following Saturday morning when Rory arrived at the diner. "Hi, Luke," she greeted him. 

"Coffee?" he asked, turning around with the pot in his hand.

"Yes, please." Luke set down a blue mug and filled it to the brim. "Doesn't Jess usually help out on a Saturday morning?" Rory asked. She was certain that she always saw Jess at this time of day.

"Usually, but I let him sleep this morning. He's still recuperating from last night. I'm sure that's not something he'll let you know. What exactly happened at dinner? You know how Jess is. He won't give anyone unnecessary information even when tortured."

"My grandparents buried him alive and he called them on it. Then Grandma kicked him out."

"Sounds like a good time," Luke said.

"I'm sure it was great for Jess," Rory added. "He was doing so well with Grandpa and then Grandma just slaughtered him."

"I'm sure it had something to do with our financial situation," Luke said exasperatedly. "It always seems to come down to that with your grandparents."

Rory stared into the coffee. "I know. I just wish they weren't so judgmental."

"Why don't you go upstairs and see if you can get him out of bed?" Luke asked. "I was planning on making him a big breakfast to cheer him up. I figured you'd want to get in on that." Luke smiled.

Draining the remainder of her coffee, Rory nodded. "I'll see what I can do." She looked back at Luke one last time before escaping behind the curtain.

She knocked on the door lightly. "Come in," a small voice requested. Rory eased the door open and slid inside the apartment. Jess looked like a somber little boy. Fully dressed in faded jeans and a red long sleeved shirt, he was curled sideways on the bed. His hair was left ungelled, but it still managed to stick up in several different directions.

Rory said on the edge of his bed. "What's the matter, Jess?" she asked softly, reaching to tousle his hair. Unlike many times before, Jess allowed her to do so.

"Everything," he answered. "I'm not good enough for you, Rory."

Rory sighed and retracted her hand. "Jess…"

"I'm never going to be good enough," he said blankly. "It doesn't matter about my GPA or SAT score, or what AP classes I'm taking."

"Jess," she tried to interrupt again.

"I'm always going to be the abused little boy from New York. The troublemaker with a shady past. No one is ever going to forget was a loser I was and am."

"Jess."

"Rory, I'm not right for you. You deserve better," he said sadly.

"Jess."

"Rory."

"Shut up." Rory slammed her lips against his. After she tore her lips from his, they sunk back on the bed together.

"Jess, it doesn't matter about your mistakes. You're perfect the way you are." Rory took a deep breath. "And I love you."

Jess nibbled lightly on her earlobe. "I love you, too."

Rory slammed her lips back against his and he rolled himself on top of her. "Jess," she hissed.

"What?" he asked huskily.

"Should we be doing this here?" she asked between soft kisses.

"Where else would we?" he asked in a low tone that sent shivers radiating up her spine. "We're not having sex or anything."

Rory groaned in delight as Jess kissed her neck. He was leaning over her making small circles on her neck with his tongue. Gently, she slid a warm hand around his side and stroked his smooth skin.

"_Rory_," he moaned gently as she traced the muscles lining his stomach.

"Do you want me to stop?" she asked, withdrawing her fingers.

"No," he replied hoarsely.

She placed a tender kiss on his neck and nibbled lightly around the area. They were entangled on his bed. Her hands grazed his flat, muscular stomach while his hands lingered at the small of her back. "I love you," he whispered huskily as she melted into his arms. They were silent except for the suction of their lips. "Oh, shit! Luke!" Quickly, the young lovers tore apart and in a panic, Jess pushed Rory off the bed.

"Why are you flushed and panting?" Luke asked as Jess tried to straighten his clothes and hair. "And where's Rory?"

"Oh, um. I'm down here, Luke."

"Jess, why is Rory on the floor?"

"I lost my watch, so I had to look under the bed," Rory fibbed.

"Lost your ponytail, too." Luke leaned against the doorframe as he looked at Rory sitting on the floor.

Reaching up, Rory realized that her hair was scattered in about ten different directions. A scant few strands remained in her ponytail holder.

"I'm going to go outside and count to ten. When I come back in, Rory, your hair will not look like you were in the bed with Jess, and Jess, you will put your bedroom eyes back in the drawer. When you finish quickly fixing yourselves, you may sit on the couch on opposite ends." Luke turned around. "And no touching!" he added before slamming the door.


	14. Valentine's Day

Gah. I'm sorry for the long wait on this chapter. I was plagued with writer's block AND a faulty computer. Thanks for being patient.

Thanks to all the reviewers of chapter thirteen: DiehardJavaJunkie14, Love.Always.Alice.and.Jasper, CherryWolf713, krymsunkiss52, ShaolinQueen, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, XxXDrama QueenXxX, mizskitles220, crescent, x33mary..., gilmorefanforever, lillitgirlx2, blonde.biatch, Nobody, Jeremy Shane, Curley-Q, Environmentalist, Lucille Mabel, GothicSorceressRikku15, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, and JESSandRORYforever.

Disclaimer: I still don't own anything.

* * *

"Tomorrow is going to be our first Valentine's Day as a couple," Jess mentioned as they drove home from Hartford.

"You want to celebrate Valentine's Day?" Rory asked in disbelief. When they were young, Jess wouldn't even pass out paper Valentines or candy during class parties. Luke had taught him that Valentine's Day was a meaningless scam created by greeting card companies.

"I just wanted to do something nice for you," he said. "You don't think your mom can get you out of Friday night dinner, do you?"

Sighing, Rory briefly locked eyes with Jess. "I'll see what I can do. Grandma's going to be aggravated at you for being so last minute."

"Yippee. More brownie points," Jess muttered, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

"You're the one that brought it up the day before," Rory criticized.

"You're the one with the grandmother who has a pole up her ass." Jess flipped his right directional on and pulled off to the right lane.

"That's not fair," Rory said.

"Nothing is."

"What's wrong with you? You've been snippy all week," Rory pointed out.

Jess sighed. "It's nothing, just a lot of stress, aggravation, and pressure." He thrust the shift to park and looked at Rory. "And I'm taking it out on you," he said lightly, sinking in the bucket seat. "I'm sorry."

"We have three months left at school. You're waiting on some heavy-duty schools and scholarships. I get that," Rory said. "I'm checking the mail every day just in case. I have AP tests looming closer. I'm fretting over my SAT II results. We're going to be at each other's throats," she said gently.

Jess leaned over the center console and kissed Rory hard on the mouth.

"What was that for?" Rory asked breathily.

Pulling her closer, Jess nibbled on her earlobe. "For being amazing, understanding, and having Lorelai hem your skirt an extra inch."

"Jess!" Rory exclaimed, pushing him away. "You're such a pig."

"I thought you liked this. My mistake." Jess pulled away and unlocked the car doors. "I have homework," he taunted.

"It's four-thirty. You never do homework this early," Rory reminded him as she slammed the car door. "I thought we could just hang out now."

"I have a huge AP calculus exam tomorrow," Jess informed her, grabbing his backpack and slinging it over one shoulder. "It's that whole pressure thing, remember? Well, I'm pressuring myself to get an A."

"How ambitious."

"Rory, you're being unfair," Jess whined. Quickly, he covered his mouth.

"Jess Mariano, did you just _whine_?" Rory asked with a smile playing on her lips.

"Aw jeez."

"I think it's adorable." Rory reached over and pinched her boyfriend's cheek. "My mom isn't going to be home for a while. Want to come over? I'll let you study."

Jess smiled at the peace offering. The past week had been hectic for both of them. "Sure." Slyly, he linked his fingers between hers. "I love you," he whispered.

* * *

Jess twitched before ringing the doorbell. Per Rory's request, he arrived at seven-thirty. He knew it took her longer to get ready when they were going out. For an evening in, Rory was usually decked out in sweats or jeans. Jess could hardly wait for her to open the door in wearing something fancy.

"Coming!" Rory yelled as she tripped over a shoe. She ripped the door open and stared at Jess. "Wow. Hi. You look…"

"Amazing. You look amazing," Jess gawked. He felt his jaw drop for a split second. Rory's chestnut hair was silky and splayed over her bare shoulders. Jess found himself looking her up and down, his eyes catching on unfamiliar parts of her body. His jerked his eyes away from the blue dress that hugged the curves he didn't know Rory Gilmore had.

"You look nice. That's what you wore to Friday night dinner," Rory said, blushing. "And you're hiding something behind your back."

"How could you tell?" Jess asked.

"When you get nervous like this, you run your hand through your hair." Rory beckoned for him to come inside. "Unhand the goods," she ordered.

"Is that the way you treat a guy who bought you candy?" he joked. "Close your eyes, and no peeking."

Rory closed her eyes and accepted the huge heart shaped box of chocolates from Jess. Smiling, "You really do love me!" Rory dropped the box on the couch and hugged him.

"Glad I could make you happy," he replied, smirking. "Are you almost ready?" he asked, eying her bare feet. Rory stepped into her little blue-heeled shoes and was instantly two inches taller. "Take it easy with those heels, Gilmore," Jess joked. "I'm not that much taller than you."

"I have a tiny boyfriend," Rory kid as she grabbed her purse and jacket. "Come on, are you almost done complaining?" she taunted.

"If you keep picking on me, I'll go home and you won't get dinner."

"That's not fair!" Rory pouted. "I wasn't trying to diminish your masculinity. I think it's cute that you're 5'7."

"5'8," Jess corrected quickly as he stepped outside.

Rory shut the door behind them and chased Jess down the stairs. "Where are we going?" she asked.

"You'll see," Jess answered before opening the passenger door for Rory.

Jess was able to keep Rory silent for the whole twenty minute drive. Her mouth gaped open when he lead her inside for their 8:15 reservation.

Rory smiled at Jess over the tall menu. "This is so fancy," she whispered softly.

"I know."

"You're so secretive." Rory gazed back down at the menu. "It's expensive, Jess."

"I know."

"Stop being so indifferent. Do you have enough money for us to eat here?" Rory whispered in a panic.

"Relax, Rory. I worked a few extra shifts and Luke slipped me fifty dollars. Is it too much to just sit back and enjoy that I've done something unexpected for you?" Jess hissed as he snapped the menu shut.

Taken aback, Rory slumped in her chair. "I'm sorry," she whispered. She propped the menu up as a shield and tried to hide her glassy eyes from Jess.

"Jeez. Rory." Jess took down Rory's menu, forcing her to look into his eyes. "What's wrong? I wasn't snapping at you."

She folded her hands in her lap and nodded. "You've just been so irate for the past week or so. I'm sorry."

Jess grabbed his girlfriend's hand. "Rory. Stop apologizing to me because I've been a lousy boyfriend for the past couple of weeks. I'm the one who should be saying sorry." He squeezed Rory's hand in his. "I'm sorry."

She flashed him a smile and squeezed back.

"Now that's we're good, what do you want to eat?" Jess asked as he handed her menu back.

* * *

"You're walking me to my door."

"I'm walking you to your door."

Rory draped her hands down Jess's back. "Thank you for tonight," she said softly.

"You're worth it," he replied, pulling Rory closer. "Is your mom home?" He nuzzled her neck.

"She might be." Rory said. Jess pulled away from Rory's neck. "Hey," she gasped.

"I don't want to get in trouble with your mom," he explained lazily.

"Come inside where it's warmer. I'll see if she's home." Rory fished for her key and slid it in the lock. When it clicked open, Rory pushed into the house. The lights she had turned on earlier where still on, which could mean Lorelai had yet to come back. "Mom!" she yelled.

Jess stayed close to the door in the foyer while Rory shuffled into the kitchen. He heard the back door slam. "She home?" he asked as Rory appeared back in the living room.

"The Jeep isn't here. She's out." Rory slipped her shoe off and shrunk back to her normal height.

"That's better," Jess teased as tickled her.

"Jess!" Rory yelled as he started to overpower her with the tickling.

He leaned down to kiss her and she played with the wispy hairs at the nape of his neck. "You know that drives me crazy," he whispered after breaking the kiss.

"I know," Rory whispered back, continuing to toy with the little hairs.

"Well, we're going to have to do something about that." Jess lifted Rory up under her legs while supporting her back.

"Jess!" Rory squealed as he carried her through the kitchen. The springs in her mattress groaned as Jess sat on the bed. "This is what you want?"

His voice was low and hoarse. "Are you okay?"

Rory tucked her hand underneath his jacket. "As long as you take this off."

The door slammed at the opposite end of the house, causing Jess to leap off the bed.

"Daughter! Hoodlum!" Lorelai shouted from the living room.

"Shit." Jess adjusted his jacket and started leafing through Rory's bookcase.

"What are you doing?" Rory hissed from her place on the bed.

"Act natural. I just want to borrow a book," Jess replied as he tabbed through an old edition of "The Bell Jar."

"Okay." Rory got off her bed and wandered through the kitchen. "Hi, mom."

"Rory!"

"What are you doing out here? I thought you would come looking for us." Rory eyed the television where an old black and white movie was playing on mute.

"I thought I'd give you some privacy."

"Okay." Rory nodded.

"Did you need privacy?" Lorelai asked, turning away from the television.

Blushing, Rory sat down next to her mother. "Not yet."

"Good." Lorelai nodded and put her arm around Rory. "You'll tell me when, right?"

"I'll tell you when."


	15. Forget It

Language warning.

Thanks for all the reviews on chapter fourteen: XxXDrama QueenXxX, ArigatoKarateBaby, gilmorefanforever, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, Jeremy Shane, Curley-Q, krymsunkiss52, Lucille Mabel, DiehardJavaJunkie14, lillitgirlx2, CherryWolf713, mizskitles220, GrlWithoutAName, curbsidepuke, JESSandRORYforever, ultimategilmoregirl, ShaolinQueen, and Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3.

Disclaimer: I still don't own anything.

* * *

"Where is he?" Rory asked loudly as she thundered into the diner.

"Upstairs putting gel in his hair, probably," Luke said.

"No! No, I told him to get up early today!" Rory yelled as she sprinted upstairs. "You're not dressed yet!" she exclaimed as Jess stumbled out of the bathroom clad only in blue boxer shorts.

"Relax, Rory. And keep it down, I have a headache." Jess grabbed an undershirt and threw it over his head.

"Jess!" Rory squealed. "We need to leave now!" She stomped a saddle shoe on floor as he pulled on a pair of tan pants.

"What's the rush?" he asked, buttoning his shirt. "It's only seven."

"Jesus, Jess. Don't tell me you forgot." Rory watch Jess undo the clasp on his pants to tuck his shirt in. She quickly looked away.

"Forgot what?" Jess asked as he selected a pair of sock and began to pull them on.

"The construction! It's going to take twice as long to get to Chilton."

"Shit." Jess looked up from the shoe he was tying. "We need to leave now!"

Rory threw her hands in the air. "Finally!" Jess grabbed his book bag, tie, and jacket while Rory started downstairs.

"Have a nice day at…" Luke started as the pair raced through the diner and out the door. "Never mind."

Jess quickly yanked the gear to drive and sped out of Stars Hollow.

* * *

Jess looked at the clock on the dashboard again.

"It's late," Rory pointed out.

"We're going to _be_ late," he said, pulling past the last part of the construction zone. The road was empty for the most part at that moment, and Jess pressed his foot harder on the gas pedal.

"Jess," Rory pleaded. She hated it when Jess drove fast.

"I have a test with Medina in my first class," he said without diverting his eyes from the road. "You know the policy, and it doesn't matter that your mom dated him in your freshman year. Not to mention that he hates me by extension because of Luke."

Sighing, Rory looked at Jess. "Why would you bring up Mr. Medina?"

"Told you. Test."

"That isn't what I meant." Rory sighed. "He needs to follow the school rules. There's the "no special treatment" clause." Rory paused. "Can't you slow down a little?" Rory held onto her coffee as Jess continued to speed.

"God forbid there be any lenience," Jess started. "And if I don't make it for this stupid test, my average is going to drop," he muttered.

"Jess," Rory said softly.

"And this fucking headache," Jess continued. "I'm never going to be able to concentrate, and there's no time to stop at the nurse for a pill. Of course, I don't have any Tylenol. Would have been easier." Jess took one hand off the wheel to press on his temple. The car swerved, and Rory grabbed the wheel.

"Jess!"

"Rory, I have to get to class!" Jess sped around a corner to be greeted with a pair of red and blue lights flashing in his rearview mirror. "Shit." Jess slammed his foot on the brake, causing Rory's coffee to fly from her grip and spill over her legs. Cranking down the window, Jess watched the cop approach.

"License and registration, please," he said grumpily.

"Rory, registration is in the glove compartment." Rory fished it out while Jess slid his license out of his wallet. "This is fucking unbelievable," Jess muttered.

"Just be quiet, Jess."

"We're going to be late."

"Did you know you were going fifty miles and hour in a thirty five mile an hour zone?" the cop asked as he handed Jess back his license and registration.

"I have to get to school. Look at the fucking time," Jess snapped.

"Jess!"

"Shut the hell up, Rory."

Rory looked away as the cop continued. "I wouldn't speak to me like that if I were you. I was going to let you off with a warning since your record is clean. You're getting a ticket now." He pulled out a pad and pen while Jess slouched in his seat.

"This is fucking ridiculous," Jess said under his breath.

"I think you need to step out of the car now, Mr. Mariano."

Jess looked up in shock.

"Have you been drinking today?" the cop continued.

"No! I have a test today! It's seven thirty in the fucking morning."

"I don't like your attitude."

"Tough shit. It's your fault I won't be able to take the test now." Jess punched the side of the car in aggravation.

"Get out of the car."

"Why?"

"I said, get out of the damn car! Don't ask questions, you're pissing me off." Jess opened the door and the cop undid the handcuffs from his belt.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Jess protested as the cop slapped the cuffs on his wrists.

"Get out of the car, Chickee," the cop requested. Rory pulled the door handle and let herself out of the car.

"Fantastic, Jess. Thanks a lot." Rory smacked his bicep as she followed the cop and Jess to the police car.

The phone rang in the diner at around eight o'clock. Luke groaned as he surveyed the breakfast rush. "Luke's," he answered gruffly.

"Luke, it's Rory."

"Rory? What's wrong? Shouldn't you be in school?" Luke yanked the long phone cord behind the curtain.

"Luke, I have something to tell you. I need you to promise me you will stay calm and not fly off the handle. Please, don't freak out on Jess."

"Jesus, Rory. What's wrong? You're getting me nervous." Luke wrapped the phone cord around his finger.

"I need you to…" Rory paused. "I need you to bail Jess out of jail."

* * *

Rory swung her legs as she sat on the bench. Jess was sitting in the jail cell a few feet away from her. He was silent, and Rory checked to see if he was sleeping every so often. Jess had his knees pulled up to his chest and was resting his chin on them. Since he had sat down on the floor, his eyes didn't leave the wall. At one point, Rory sensed he was crying, or trying not to cry, yet he neglected to wipe the lone tears from his cheekbones. Sighing, Rory turned her eyes to the clock. It had been twenty minutes since she had called Luke. She didn't expect it to be a quick run, especially to Hartford. The whole experience was grating on her nerves. Jess had a test today, but she did not. It was a good thing too, because she would have been angrier with the boy sitting in the tiny cell. Looking back at Jess, she noticed him still staring at the wall sadly. Her saddle shoes clicked on the floor as she stood. Luke would be coming soon, and Luke would be angry. She had instructed him not to be, but it was Luke. Luke had a temper and, no matter what explanation was given, he would yell; he would curse; hell, he might even throw things.

Luke thundered into the police station. "I'm here to bail out my degenerate nephew." Rory looked over at Jess to see if he responded in any way. He was still staring at the sidewall, and he still was not moving. The officer behind the desk gave Luke a sheet to fill out and upholstered the keys from his belt loops.

"Free to go, kid." He stuck the key in the lock and slid open the iron door. Jess looked up at the officer with doe eyes, an expression Rory had never seen on him. Jess picked himself off the cement floor and, hugging himself, left the cell.

Luke said nothing as the three left the police station. Neither Rory nor Jess spoke in the truck, and neither wanted to provoke Luke to do so either. When Luke wordlessly dropped Rory off at the Crap Shack, she grabbed her bag and looked timidly at Jess. Jess threw this glance to the front and continued the silence. Finally, Luke set the gear in park and exited the truck. Jess wasn't sure how to take his uncle's silence, but grabbed his own bag off the seat and headed for the diner. The neon numbers on his alarm clock stayed still at ten o'clock. Luke had yet to come upstairs, and Jess wasn't sure what to do. At first, he looked around the room. Then he kicked his clunky school shoes off. After being alone in the apartment for what seemed like an hour, Jess started rubbing at the pads of his fingers. They were coated in finger printing ink and no matter how hard he rubbed, the ink wouldn't budge.

Turning his head to the door, Jess realized he heard footsteps. The door to the apartment swung open. "Sit down," Luke growled. Jess backed away. He had been in contact with angry Luke because of the stupid things he used to do, but Jess had never seen Luke so irate in his life. "I said, sit down!"

Jess backed over to the couch and looked up timidly at his uncle. He had never been so scared in his life. "Okay," he said softly, fidgeting with the ink stains.

"What were you thinking?" Luke bellowed. "I don't care if you're going to be late for your own goddamn wedding, you don't speed like that, and you sure as hell don't piss off a police officer! You could have put your own life in danger, Rory's life in danger, and everyone around you in danger!" Luke's voice rose steadily with each word, causing Jess to sink lower into the couch cushions. "You are not a fucked up kid, but some of the shit you've been pulling lately makes me wonder what you're doing! You have a speeding ticket, which on its on isn't that big of a deal, but then add in the suspended license and the fact that you were sitting in a jail cell!" Luke's face turned beet red and Jess looked at his stocking feet. "Look at me!" Luke roared.

Nervously, Jess looked into Luke's flaming eyes.

"What the fuck were you thinking?" Luke hollered again. "I took you in and you were a piece of work," Luke snarled. "Drinking in your freshman year, smoking like a damn chimney indoors, having sex before you turned eighteen. And I let you. I let you!" Luke pointed his finger accusingly at Jess. "I wasn't going to watch you fuck your life up like your mother, but I let you smoke; I let you drink; I let you have sex. But you are not going to screw me over. You're a little punk, and I don't know what has gotten into you. Whatever the fuck has, get it out and get it out now. I'm not going to tolerate this shit from you, because you are not my kid and I don't have to. You're eighteen fucking years old, and you should know better!" Luke turned on his heel and stormed out of the apartment. The glass rattled in the door as it slammed, but it didn't break. Jess leaned back on the couch and tried to not let Luke's words get to him. He was right; Jess was not Luke's kid. He didn't need to tolerate him, he chose to. Jess fought back a sob and tried to think of all the things he had screwed up. Shuffling over to his bed, he grabbed a tattered back of Camels and a lighter from under the mattress. He flicked the lighter and took a single drag off the stick. Tilting his head back, Jess looked at the ceiling. As he blew the smoke from his nose and mouth, Jess slid his hand under his mattress again. This time, he produced two skinny envelopes addressed to him. As he reread the rejection note of "We're sorry, but you're not fit for this school," Jess let a single tear absorb into the thick paper.

The door to the apartment burst open once more and Jess looked up at Luke's angry expression. "Jess," he started.

Jess shook his head. "Don't start, Luke. I don't want to hear it again."

"That's not what I came up here to say, Jess," Luke said gently. Jess could still tell he was angry, but he was hiding it the best he could.

Glancing at him dejectedly, Jess handed Luke the letters. "Columbia and Vassar," he said with a shrug. "I'm going out."

Luke scanned the rejection letter carefully before noticing Jess lingering in the doorway. "Jess," he started once again.

"I don't feel like fighting," Jess said. "I'm sorry I've been such a nuisance." He let the door bang shut and leaned up against the other side, pack of cigarettes in hand. In twenty minutes, he would have smoked them all.


	16. Broken Wings

Vulnerable Jess is a side of him we've never seen on the show. I hope I've done the image justice.

Keep in mind that it's possible for Jess to be rejected by colleges even with his grades. After all, Paris did **everything** in order to be accepted into Harvard…and she still didn't get in.

Thanks for all the reviews on chapter fifteen: DiehardJavaJunkie14, XxXDrama QueenXxX, ShaolinQueen, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, CherryWolf713, GrlWithoutAName, JESSandRORYforever, Curley-Q, Polly, ultimategilmoregirl, mizskitles220, Jeremy Shane, krymsunkiss52, Lucille Mabel, Love.Always.Alice.and.Jasper, lillitgirlx2, GothicSorceressRikku15, S.Mariano, and Kassandra27.

Disclaimer: I don't own Gilmore Girls or the lyrics at the end of the chapter.

* * *

Luke needed a chance to cool off from the events of the day. At only a little past ten in the morning, he popped the top off a bottle of bear and sipped while he paced around the apartment. Every so often, he could hear the flick of his nephew's lighter in the hallway. He had been irrational, but Jess had really ticked him off. Sighing, Luke removed the baseball cap and ran his fingers through his hair. Jess rarely disappointed him, and he rarely blew up at Jess. Sitting back on the couch, Luke tried to remember the last time he had gotten that angry with him. He and Jess had falling-outs during middle school and early high school years. Jess had grown up a lot since then, which is why Luke couldn't believe how juvenile he had been. It had to be in the past, though. Jess was eighteen, but still a kid in Luke's eyes. He had to push aside his nephew's wrongs in life or he would never look back once he left. Luke sighed and opened the door. Jess was sitting against the adjacent wall fiddling with an empty pack of cigarettes. His little ashtray was filled to the brim with butts and soot. Luke looked away from the tobacco pile and at Jess, only to see the one thing he wasn't expecting; Jess was crying. Bright, shiny tears littered his nephew's cheeks as he concentrated on the cigarette package.

"Jess?" he asked calmly.

Jess tore his eyes away from the package and glanced at his uncle. "What?" he hiccupped.

"Can we talk?" Luke asked, leaning against the doorframe. "A conversation. I don't want to yell at you."

Nodding, Jess picked himself off the floor and silently entered the apartment. "Okay," he said once he was settled on the couch. Luke noticed his voice was soft and choppy while his eyes sad and fearful.

"Come here." Luke had never been good with affection, but he could tell Jess needed a hug. As he wrapped his nephew into a fatherly embrace, Luke could feel the tears soaking into his flannel. It occurred to him that he hadn't seen Jess cry since he was three years old. He was a private person who kept many of his emotions hidden. "I'm sorry," Luke said as Jess pulled away from the hug. "I was angry," Luke explained futilely. He sat on the couch and straightened the baseball cap on his head. "You made a mistake, and I'm sorry that it turned out like this."

Jess smoothed the ink stains on his index fingers. "I'm sorry I disappointed you. I just…everything's falling apart." Jess brought his knees up to his chest and rested his chin on them. When Luke looked over at him, he realized Jess appeared more like a little boy than when he actually was one. He was vulnerable, and Luke wasn't sure what to say to him. Luke had been his "father" for ten years, but he was still unsure of how to be a parent. He didn't know how to make anything better, especially since Jess usually resisted when he tried.

"You wanted to go to Columbia?" Luke asked carefully.

Jess answered with a meek nod. "I wanted to go to school in New York. I grew up in the city and I want to go back. I wanted to remember New York in a better light, when my mother didn't get drunk and her one night stands didn't beat the crap out of me."

Luke nodded, resisting the urge to hug Jess again. "You applied to more than just those schools."

Jess sighed. "If I didn't get in there, what's the chance of getting in anywhere?"

Luke tensed. Jess wasn't closing back up. There was a chance to have a real, open conversation with his nephew. "You're smart, Jess. You're third in the class. Some of these schools are just too damn picky for their own good."

"How would you know?" Jess bit back.

"Rory was talking to me about it once. She said with highly selective schools, there always seems to be someone better prospects."

Jess sighed. "So I'm still not smart enough."

"That's not what I said. They're not just sifting through Chilton students, they're filtering applicants from all over the world," Luke fumbled through his words.

"Downside of competitive schools," Jess mumbled.

"I guess so." Jess slowly rocked back and forth on the couch. "It's going to be fine."

Jess stretched his legs back out. "I lost my license for a month and a half."

"I know."

"I'm sorry for everything that happened today, Luke. And, thanks, by the way. I know you didn't have to take me in and take care of me for the past ten years. I, you know. I appreciate it."

Luke smiled. "I'd be glad to call you my son. I'm sorry for yelling at you."

Nodding, Jess stood and faced Luke. "I think there's someone else I need to talk to."

* * *

Rory heard the doorbell ringing as she erased a number from her physics homework. She shuffled to the door, opening it to find a disheveled Jess on the front stoop. Before she could say a word, Jess took her in his arms and kissed her. Rory allowed the pencil to drop before raking her fingers through his thick, dark hair.

"Jess," she whispered.

"I'm sorry about today," he whispered back. "I didn't mean to snap at you. And, jeez." Jess ruffled his hair nervously. "I could have hurt you or killed you."

"What's the matter?" Rory asked softly, hooking her thumb through one of his belt loops. "You've been in this mood for weeks. I just hate this." Rory slipped her hand in his back pocket. "I know you too well," she whispered. "You're not angry; you're hurt and frustrated.

Jess leaned against Rory. "I know."

"Will you talk to me now?" she asked gently as he toyed with the ends of her hair.

Nodding, Jess took her hand from his back pocket and laced his fingers with hers. "Come here," he said softly as they entered her bedroom. Jess pulled her toward the bed where he cradled her for five minutes, placing tender kisses along her collarbone.

"This isn't talking," Rory pointed out softly before joining her lips with his.

Jess held Rory tightly. "I got rejected," he said slowly.

"Rejected?" Rory looked up at Jess, noticing his eyes were rimmed conspicuously in red. "Have you been crying?" she asked delicately.

Jess wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. "No. I'm okay." She could tell by his eyes that he was pleading with himself to lie. "No, I'm not," he said sincerely, gripping her arm.

Rory smoothed away the stray hairs from his eyes, "I've never seen you like this before," she said. "I'm worried about you."

Jess snuggled her closer. "I just want everything to be the way it's supposed to," he whispered.

"What do you mean?" Rory asked as shifted on the bed. Her back was against the pillows and Jess was cradled in her arms. Rory planted a short kiss on his forehead before ruffling his hair. It was the only time she had ever comforted Jess before. He never went to her and felt he could cry. No matter how many years they had been friends, Jess never needed her shoulder to cry on. Jess told her it was because he wasn't a sappy person, and that he didn't need a shoulder and a tissue. Rory looked down at her boyfriend, her friend, as he buried his face in her shoulder. The dampness from his tears soaked through her thin t-shirt, and she felt them against her skin. "Jessie," she whispered softly.

"I hate this," he mumbled against the fabric of her shirt.

"Shhh," she comforted him. "It's okay. You can cry."

"Don't wanna," he said sadly. Rory held him tighter as a sob escaped his lips.

"I love you." Jess hid his face from her once more.

"I love you, too," he responded weakly.

"Will you please talk to me?"

Jess nodded and shoved his palm in his eye to stop the tears. He had never cried like this, even when he was little and whipped with a leather belt. It was a stupid reason to get all weepy about, he reasoned with himself. The moisture soaked into his sleeves as he wiped them across his eyes. "I didn't get into Columbia," he finally said, wincing at the sound of his words. All his emotions had been bottled up for so long that a fresh batch of tears stung in the corner of his eyes.

"I didn't know you wanted to go there."

"I applied, though. You knew that."

Rory nodded. "You wanted to go home."

Jess shook his head. "This is home. Here with you is home. New York is just…where I was born." He wondered why he wanted to go back there to begin with.

"Jess." Rory looked into his dark eyes.

"I just. Can I…" Jess sniffled and wiped his eyes again. "I don't want to do this," he whimpered. "I don't want to be a failure."

"You're not," Rory said, smoothing back his hair again.

"No, no. I am," Jess protested, clinging to her again. "I can't…I can't do this anymore." As he desperately tried to hold it back, fifteen years of pent up emotions broke the proverbial dam. The boy latched onto Rory's arm appeared ten years old and terrified. It was Jess in raw form, a little boy who was lost at three years old as he watched his mother beaten and bloodied from the closet.

"Shhh." Rory ran her hands through his hair again and planted a kiss on his forehead. Sobs wracked his meager frame as he trembled against her.

"No. I tried so hard and my mom didn't even love me enough to keep me," Jess blubbered. "She never…she never even came back."

Rory's eyes widened as Jess whimpered again. "Jess…" He adhered tighter to her body.

"And Luke didn't even want me. He kept calling her back and asking when she was coming to take me home." Jess buried his face into Rory's shoulder again.

"That's not true," Rory said softly. "Luke loves you."

"I know," he whispered. "But he didn't want an eight year old to take care of."

Shaking her head, Rory laced her fingers between his. "You're great, Jess. You shouldn't be insecure." Jess dropped his head from Rory's shoulder to the pillow. "Luke is proud of you; I'm proud of you. You're going to make something of yourself, wherever you go to school."

Nodding, Jess rolled over on his back and wiped his eyes. They both stared at the ceiling before he broke the silence again. "Thank you," he whispered.

"For what?" she asked, squeezing his hand.

"For letting me flip out and cry without judging me." Rory turned her head on the pillow to look at him. His eyes were glassy, red, and puffy.

"I love you," she said. Rory held him close as he kissed her softly.

"I love you, too, Rory." Jess curled into a vulnerable ball and latched on to her arm again. Sighing peacefully, Rory watched his chest rise and fall until his breath evened out in sleep.

* * *

_Close your eyes, but don't dream too deep  
And please pass me some memories  
And when I fall you're underneath_


	17. College Decisions

Fanfiction is really the best medicine. I hope everyone understands my lapse in updates. For those who were not aware, my mom passed away last Tuesday. Before then, she was in the hospital and I was already grief stricken. At eighteen, it is never an enjoyable experience to see your mom suffer so much. I just wanted to say thanks to all those who sent me private messages over the last couple of weeks. I really appreciate it. I may be up and running again, but don't expect perfectly timed updates for now. I'm still grieving, which means I'm buried under the blankets for more hours at a time. I plan to keep writing, so definitely do not worry about me abandoning my works in progress. Writing keeps me sane, so hopefully I can work back up to writing as much as I'm accustomed to.

Thanks for all the reviews on chapter sixteen:JESSandRORYforever, CherryWolf713, Polly, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, XxXDrama QueenXxX, ShaolinQueen, mizskitles220, Jeremy Shane, ciaraXTOP, krymsunkiss52, GrlWithoutAName, S.Mariano, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, Curley-Q, and GothicSorceressRikku15.

Disclaimer: Why, I still own absolutely nothing! Thanks for asking.

* * *

Jess moaned slightly and fluttered his thick eyelashes. His eyes were crusted with sleep and tears. Reaching up to rub them, he noticed Rory leaning against the headboard with her fingers tangled in his hair. Smiling, he took in her pretty face and serene posture. His eyes glanced quickly at the alarm clock; the pink neon numbers informed him that it was almost three in the afternoon. Jess had been asleep for a couple of hours and was still groggy.

"Jess?" Rory mumbled sleepily. "Are you awake?" She shifted and loosened her fingers from his hair. Her back was sore from sleeping against the wooden headboard, but she tried to ignore the prickle at her lower back. "Jess," she mumbled again, straightening out her back.

"Hi," he murmured, hiding his face from the sun.

"You okay?" she asked.

"Other than having to live with the knowledge of what a baby I was earlier, I'm fine." Jess sat up and rubbed the remaining sleep from his eyes. Raking his fingers through his messy hair, Jess smiled crookedly at his girlfriend.

"Do you want to talk about anything else?" she asked, swinging her cramped legs over the side of her small bed.

Jess shook his head. "I think I'm okay now."

"You missed your test today," Rory said softly.

"Fucked a lot of things up today," Jess said, leaning his weight on his arms and throwing his head back to look at the ceiling. "You know I lost my license too, right?"

Rory bit the inside of her mouth. "I should have figured, but I didn't know that."

"I guess we'll go back to the good old days before I got the car." Jess smirked. Neither of them enjoyed the long, smelly bus ride to and from Hartford. He wasn't excited at the idea of having to ride that bus again.

"Or you could let me drive." Rory smiled and gave Jess a hug. "You always seem to forget that I have a license too."

"You think you can drive my car?" he asked, raising his eyebrow.

"If I can drive my mom's jeep, I can drive that pile of junk you call a car." Rory tousled his already messy hair and he grinned.

"Huh. Well, I guess I'll be getting a ride to school then." He pushed Rory back on the bed and kissed her while she giggled.

* * *

"Rory!" Lorelai yelled from the front door. "It's here!"

Rory discarded the book she was reading and raced out to the foyer. "It's here!" She jumped around with Lorelai excitedly.

"Well, open it!" Lorelai demanded, handing her daughter the large envelope.

With her index finger, Rory ripped the seam of the envelope open and reached in for the contents. "Dear Lorelai Gilmore, we are pleased to announce that you have been accepted to Harvard University." Rory dropped the envelope, packet, and letter on the couch as she and Lorelai danced around the foyer.

"We need to celebrate!" Lorelai said excitedly. "To Luke's!" She grabbed her car keys and Rory followed her out the door.

When they arrived at Luke's, Jess was bussing down the counter. He turned around when the bell over the door dinged and dropped the cloth on the counter. Rory spotted his arms open and propelled her body in them. He spun her in an airborne hug until she wrapped her legs around his waist.

"Hey, that's my daughter you're handling there," Lorelai said with her hands on her hips.

Jess smirked wildly before setting Rory on the floor. "I know, but she got into Harvard. All bets are off."

Rory smiled up at her boyfriend. "How did you know about Harvard?"

"Just did," he replied simply. "Why else would you come running in here like that?" Jess leaned against the edge of the counter. "I'm doing something special for you on Saturday. Don't you try to get out of it." He snuck his arm around her shoulders.

"I love you," she said adoringly. "Hey, did you get your letter today?" Rory asked suddenly.

Jess froze. "My letter?"

"From Harvard," Rory reminded him gently.

"Oh, that." Jess thought back to the package stored under his mattress. He had yet to open it, but he was sure it was an acceptance. "No," he lied.

"Maybe tomorrow," Rory said excitedly.

"Maybe. So, you want some food?" he asked, changing the subject and reaching for a pad of paper. "On the house, of course."

Rory looked over at Lorelai. "Two cheeseburgers with extra cheese, a plate of onion rings, and a plate of chili cheese fries. Oh, and a pot of coffee."

"Coming right up. Here, Caesar." Jess ripped the page off his notepad and handed it to Caesar. "Anything else?"

"A helping of Jess to the side?" she asked with a quaint smile.

Jess surveyed the empty diner. "As you wish," he replied, sitting at a table with her.

Lorelai handed Rory two more packets. "Did you want to open these now, Sweets?"

Rory looked at the return addresses and tore into the letter from Yale. "I got accepted to Yale, too." She smiled and slid the letter back into the envelope. Moving on to the next letter, "Princeton," she announced. "I'm accepted at Princeton too," she said, straightening the packet. Rory had not been interested in either schools, but applied just in case Harvard was not an option. "It's still Harvard. It's always been Harvard."

"Jess! What are you doing? I told you to clean up around here, not take a break with your girlfriend." Luke let go of the curtain and grabbed the plates Caesar handed him from the kitchen. He placed them down at the Gilmore's table as Rory beamed up at Luke.

"I got accepted to Harvard!" she said excitedly, bouncing out of her chair to hug Luke.

Luke hugged Rory tightly as she smiled. "I knew you could do it," he said. "It's going to be Harvard, right?" He had listened to many discussions between Lorelai and Rory over college through the years. While the elder Gilmores wanted Rory to attend Yale, Lorelai would never hear of it. Rory had thrown around the possibility of attending a school other than Harvard, but Luke hoped she would stay true to her dream.

"It's Harvard," Rory confirmed, tossing aside the other acceptance letters. She sat back down and dug into the chili cheese fries.

"You can, uh, stay and celebrate, Jess. After that, back to work." Luke rubbed his hand over his nephew's messy hair and walked behind the counter.

"What was that about?" Lorelai asked.

"Luke grounded me." Jess reached across the table and grabbed a handful of onion rings.

Rory laughed. "I remember the last time Luke grounded you."

"I know. The whole rendezvous with Tristan at that party. Don't remind me." The glint in his eyes was angry. After their initial brawl in the Chilton parking lot, Jess and Tristan both engaged in a fight during a party they were invited to. Jess had been drunk, which made Luke even angrier.

Rory shook her head. "Sorry, I almost forgot about your falling out with Luke after the party. I must have been thinking about the grounding before that." She shuffled her feet and looked away from Jess.

Jess bit off the tip of a fry and looked over at Rory. "I'm going to let you and your mom celebrate." Pushing in the chair, Jess planted a chaste kiss on Rory's lips. "I'll be around later. I'm just going to finish up my shift, do some homework, and work on my next Franklin article."

"Okay." Rory returned the kiss. "I'll see you later when you're no so busy."

"What's the matter with Jess?" Lorelai asked after he disappeared from earshot. She bit into her burger as she awaited Rory's answer.

"Oh, he's just worried about school," Rory said thoughtfully, grabbing another fry. "You know how he is."

* * *

Long after Luke had gone to bed and shut the light off, Jess turned on his lamp and sat up in bed. When he fished through his nightstand drawer, he found a notebook with a pen attached to the spiral binding. Jess flipped to the middle of the book and stared at his college pro con list. Before that day, he had never made one and always teased Rory about hers. He put the notebook on the nightstand and reached under the mattress. Both the letters from Harvard and Yale had been left unopened. Hesitantly, he ripped open the acceptance letter from Harvard and scanned it. Shaking his head, Jess grabbed his notebook and scrawled something on the page. After tearing open the letter from Yale, he scribbled another detail on the page.

Jess set aside the two letters and reached under the mattress again. He fingered the worn corners of his acceptance letter to Stanford. Smiling, he scanned the scholarship before shoving the contents back into the vast envelope. Leaning back into the propped up pillows, Jess circled choice items on his list and sighed. Luke was snoring gently across the room as Jess tucked the envelopes under his mattress and his notebook in the drawer.

He fluffed his pillows before shutting off his lamp. In the darkness, Jess smiled. Everything was falling into place.


	18. That's Great

I have included a touch of sappy Jess for your enjoyment, mostly to make up for where I leave off at the end of the chapter. Sorry in advance for that. I'm starting to get back into the swing of things, so hopefully the next chapter will be wrapped up a bit quicker. Thanks for sticking with me for the long haul.

Special thanks to the reviewers of chapter seventeen. You definitely keep me motivated: ShaolinQueen, DiehardJavaJunkie14, mizskitles220, krymsunkiss52, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, ultimategilmoregirl, gilmorefanforever, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, GrlWithoutAName, Love.Always.Alice.and.Jasper, Jeremy Shane, Literati44, lillitgirlx2, GothicSorceressRikku15, Lucille Mabel, Curley-Q, and Polly.

Disclaimer: I really don't own anything. Haven't you figured that out by now? Jeez…

* * *

Jess linked his fingers with Rory's. "Hey. So, question."

Rory nodded for him to continue.

"Prom. Did you...want to go?" Jess smirked and sat up on his bed.

"Are you asking me to Prom?" Rory asked. She knew the fancy Chilton Prom was not something that would interest Jess. The deadline to buy tickets was fast approaching, but Rory had neglected to bring it up to him.

"That depends. Would you go to Prom with me if I asked?" Jess smirked again as Rory grinned.

"Jess Mariano, you're such a softy."

Grabbing Rory's hand and kissing it, "I didn't ask; I asked _if _I asked."

"I hate you," she grumbled, slapping his forearm playfully.

"You love me," he joked, pulling her on the bed.

"Says who?" she joked back, gently kissing him on the nose.

He knocked her down in a kiss and slipped his tongue between her lips. "Hi," he said as she smoothed back his wild hair.

"Hi." She reached up and kissed him stronger than he had.  
"Wear a blue dress," Jess said suddenly. "You look gorgeous in blue."

Rory looked up at Jess, her eyes twinkling. She smiled before brushing her fingers across his jaw-line. "You would look so great in a tux," she said finally.

"I'll buy tickets on Monday," Jess said before kissing Rory. "I hate to say it but, unfortunately, I have to get back to work. You want some coffee?" he asked.

Giggling, "I'm a Gilmore."

"Coffee coming right up." Jess pulled Rory off the bed and they slid their sneakers on. Before twisting the doorknob, Rory placed her hand on his chest and pecked his lips. "I love you," he said softly, bending down to kiss her. "Come on." he closed his hand over hers and opened the door.

"It's about time you got back from your break," Luke grumbled as he thrust a blue cloth at Jess. "Go clean." Shaking his head, Jess proceeded to the back table and wiped the congealed ketchup from the surface. "Coffee, Rory?"

She boosted herself up at the counter. "Please."

"How's school going?" Luke asked as he poured her green mug to the rim with coffee. It wasn't usual that he engaged in small talk but she took it in stride when he did.

"Oh, it's great. I'm almost sorry to see it ending." She sipped at the coffee and waited for the next question from Luke.

"That's nice." Luke tossed a dry cloth over his shoulder and walked up the stairs. Rory and Jess exchanged glances, both unsure of Luke's attitude.

"Is he still mad at you?" Rory asked as Jess finished cleaning the table in the corner.

Shaking his head, "I don't think so. Luke doesn't stay mad for very long. He's not especially happy with me yet, but we're getting to it."

"Okay." Rory nodded and drank more of her coffee. "So, tonight?"

"I didn't forget." Jess smirked. "I've been planning something for tonight." He twirled the blue cloth on the counter, leaving a wet trail behind it.

"What are we doing?" she asked excitedly.

"Hey, I can't tell you that; it's supposed to be a surprise." Jess tapped her nose lightly and tossed the blue cloth back in the bucket behind the counter.

"And Luke's letting you do this?" Rory asked.

"It's Luke." Jess stepped behind the counter and fished around the shelf for his bottle of soda. "He doesn't get the whole concept of grounding." He twisted the cap off his warm Sprite and allowed the carbonation to hiss before taking a sip.

"Well, okay. As long as you're not getting in trouble." Rory leaned across the counter and kissed Jess on the lips.

"I'll be at your house at seven. Sorry I really can't take you anywhere special," he apologized.

"It's fine, Jess. You're not allowed to drive right now. Whatever you're doing, I know it will be great. I'm going to finish up some homework and hang out with my mom." Rory polished off the coffee and set the cup back on the counter. "I'll see you later."

Jess smiled as she waved before leaving. Leaning against the counter, Jess glanced at the curtain Luke disappeared behind a few minutes before. He needed to talk to Luke, but was unsure of how to go about sparking said conversation. It had been a week or so since their last conversation, and Jess was always unsure how to start them. Sighing, Jess went back to tidying the shelf behind the counter. He would bring up his concerns with Luke later.

* * *

"You're wearing a tie," Rory pointed out as they walked over to the diner.

"I'm wearing a tie," he confirmed. "It's not like you don't see me wear one every day at school."

"It's cute," Rory said. "This isn't your Chilton tie."

Jess clutched Rory's hand in his own. "Don't get your hopes up about tonight, okay?"

"I didn't expect you to do anything for me, Jess. I don't have any expectations." Rory clicked her heel on the diner's stair.

Jess ushered her inside past the diner patrons and Luke clearing the counter. He acknowledged his nephew with a nod before Jess peeled back the curtain. "This is it," Jess said as he opened the door.

Rory took in the dark apartment, candlesticks, and china plates on the kitchen table. "Jess...wow," she gasped.

"It's nothing special," he reminded her before pulled her chair away from the table. "Sit."

Rory touched the folded napkin on her plate and looked at Jess playing with the oven. He had cooked for her; it was something he had never done outside of the diner.

"It's really nothing fancy," he reminded Rory again. "Just lasagna."

Rory smiled. "But you know I like lasagna. That makes it special."

Jess cut Rory a piece of lasagna and slid it on her plate. "I'm glad you think so." He sat down with his own piece and watched her eyes twinkle.

"This is so nice," Rory gushed again.

Jess smirked and chewed the piece of lasagna in his mouth. "Well, you did get accepted to Harvard," he reminded her.

"But you really didn't have to do this," Rory said, motioning to the table.

"You're worth it," he proclaimed simply, cutting the lasagna with his fork.

"You're such a softy," Rory teased.

"Just this once," he promised emptily.

"Have you thought about next year?" Rory asked suddenly.

Jess paused. "What about next year?"

"You know. Me, you, _us_," Rory said softly.

"Hey," Jess said carefully. "What's this all about?"

"I don't know." Rory fingered her napkin. "What if we're not close? What happens if there are other people?"

"Rory." Jess set his napkin down. "Where is this coming from?"

"I don't know." She sighed. "You're probably going to a local college anyway."

"Right," Jess answered manually. He wasn't sure what else to say.

* * *

"Hey, Luke, can I talk to you?" Jess asked lightly as he crawled out of bed.

"Jeez. Why are you awake so early?" Luke asked with a start. He continued to cuff his flannel shirtsleeves as he sat down on the end of Jess's bed.

Jess tucked his bare legs back under the covers. "I was accepted to Harvard," he said sheepishly.

"That's great!" Luke reached over and ruffled his nephew's hair. "See, I told you that you would get in somewhere great. I'm proud of you."

Jess nodded. "Thanks."

"So you're going to Harvard with Rory?" Luke asked tentatively.

"No. I don't want to go to Harvard."

"What?" Luke asked, shocked.

"You know I don't want to go to Harvard. I never wanted to go to Harvard or Yale, even though I was accepted at both schools," Jess said adamantly.

"Wait, where do you want to go?" Luke asked, scratching his head. He couldn't think of Jess's other college options.

Jess reached under his mattress. "Stanford."

"And where's Stanford?" Luke asked uncertainly.

"Uh, California." Jess paused as Luke shifted uncomfortably.

"California?" Luke asked, hoping he hadn't heard Jess the first time.

"California," Jess confirmed, fidgeting with the envelope. "I, uh, got a twenty thousand dollar scholarship," he added feebly.

"Twenty thousand?" Luke asked.

"Twenty thousand dollars off the tuition every year if I can maintain a 3.5 grade point average or higher."

"Well, I think that's great," Luke said.

"You don't sound too happy about sending me off to California," Jess said, handing Luke the letter.

"I don't sound too happy about anything at four thirty in the morning, do I?" Luke opened the paper Jess handed to him and scanned it. "I think it's really great," he affirmed. "I want you to go wherever you want to go. I'm not holding you back."

Jess nodded and tucked the letter back under his mattress.

"Have you talked to Rory yet?" Luke asked cautiously.

Shaking his head, "I don't even know how to bring it up. She mentioned that she was worried about our relationship next year, but I couldn't say anything. How am I supposed to pass up a twenty thousand dollar a year scholarship?"

"I'm sure Rory would understand," Luke said gently.

"But do you think we'll be okay?" Jess asked.

"I don't think your high school relationship should be what you base your future on," Luke said softly. "You need to do what you want to do. If Stanford is where you want to go, you should go there regardless."

Jess sunk back into the pillows. "What about a long distance relationship? Do you think that would work?" Jess asked.

"You should really be talking to Rory about this," Luke responded. "I've been willing to let you go and see other places, but you should really see how Rory reacts to this decision."

Jess sighed. He knew he needed to talk to Rory about his decision to attend Stanford all the way in California. Although he wasn't sure how to bring it up. Rory deserved to know what was going on with the year ahead. "We've been friends for ten years," Jess said. "This isn't going to tear us apart." He looked adamantly at Luke. "Right?" he questioned meekly. "I don't want this choice to wreak everything."

"Jess, it's your choice. I'm not going to tell you what to do. I'm going to be neutral in this decision. I'm glad you told me what you wanted, but I'm not going to pick your future for you." Luke ruffled his nephew's hair again and stood. "Why don't you sleep on it?" He shut the lamp on Jess's bed table out. "Think about it and get a few more hours of sleep. It's Sunday, so you won't be working. Go see Rory and bring her coffee and something sweet. You're going to need to discuss this, and sooner is always better when it comes to Rory."

Jess sunk under the covers and processed what Luke had just said. He heard the door close and rolled over on his left side. Shaking his head, Jess tried to side step the thoughts of Harvard. Stanford was practical because he was saving money and Harvard cost an arm and a leg. There was no way he could attend without owing a massive amount of money after graduation. Jess sighed and rolled over to his right side. Forget sleeping on it, he probably wouldn't be able to drift off at all. He was too worried about the conversation that would take place later that day. He was almost afraid of the outcome. Mentally, he weighed the pros and cons scrawled on his list while finally floating into a fitful state of sleep. It had to be done, and he was going to do it.


	19. California and the Birds and the Bees

The T rating is in effect for this chapter. There's a mild sexual conversation, but it's obviously nothing graphic...or I would have warned you about mature content.

Thanks for the reviews on chapter eighteen: lillitgirlx2, Gaialy, ShaolinQueen, DiehardJavaJunkie14, Jeremy Shane, JessRoryYunaTidusforever, Polly, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, Curley-Q, gilmorefanforever, ultimategilmoregirl, krymsunkiss52, Lucille Mabel, mizskitles220, and Literati44.

Disclaimer: I own all the earrings in my ears, the clothes on my body, and random other items…none of which pertain to the rights for Gilmore Girls.

* * *

Jess stretched and pulled the blankets over his body once again. He had tossed and turned the whole rest of the night since waking up to talk to Luke. Sighing, he peered at the clock. Rory would probably just be getting out of bed for coffee, and he really did need to talk to her.

Dressing quickly, Jess attempted to plan what he was supposed to say to Rory. He paced quietly around the apartment, sure that the white socks on his feet were going to turn grey before he finally slipped his sneakers on.

He glanced at his tired eyes in the mirror while he worked the hair gel through his shaggy hair. Washing his hands of the sticky gel, he tried to imagine his life without Rory.

Rory had been a staple in his life since he had arrived in Stars Hollow at eight years old. She had been the first friendly face, and had continued to appear around him constantly. They had hit patches of rough pavement in their young lives, but nothing as giant as the pothole he was about to present to her.

Jess sighed and threw himself across his bed. There was no reason for him to leave the east coast, other than the financial issue. Both he and Luke needed this. It was no life for a single man to harbor his nephew financially. The money in the accounts was only going to take Jess so far if he picked a school within driving distance.

He couldn't have second thoughts and base them solely on Rory. Luke had been right in that aspect. He and Rory had been friends for years, but she would support him if this was what he wanted. Besides, nothing was going to tear them apart.

Jess made his way downstairs to find Luke shoving muffins in a brown paper bag. "Here," he said, thrusting the bag at Jess.

"What's this for?" Jess asked as he peered in the bag.

"Chocolate chip muffins. You're still going to talk to Rory, aren't you?" Luke asked as he filled a large to go cup with coffee. "You might want to take this with you."

Jess nodded and grabbed both the paper bag and coffee cup off the counter. "Thanks, Luke."

He balanced the food and knocked at the door. Rory flung the door open and smiled when she saw who the visitor was. "Hi," she said sweetly as she pulled him inside.

"I come bearing coffee," he said, lifting up the cup, "and muffins."

"Ooh, what kind of muffins?" Rory asked, grabbing the bag from Jess. He followed her into the kitchen and placed the coffee on her kitchen table.

"Where's your mom?" he asked.

"She's at the Inn today," Rory said as she took a sip of the coffee. "You want a muffin?"

"Sure." Jess sat at the kitchen table with Rory and unfolded a napkin to place his muffin on.

"Do you want some coffee? I can share, or make you some," Rory offered hesitantly.

"No. No, this is fine," Jess said as he broke the top off his muffin.

"You're quiet this morning. What's wrong?" Rory finally asked, placing her muffin back on her own napkin.

"You think we can talk?" Jess asked, feeling the trembling insecurity nestled in his voice.

"Sure. We're talking now." Rory glanced at Jess and watched him shift uncomfortably in the kitchen chair.

"No, talk about something important?" Jess clarified, shifting his weight again.

Rory nodded. "What's the matter?"

"It's about college," Jess said quickly. "I, uh, know where I want to go."

"That's great!" Rory said happily.

"I want to go to Stanford."

Rory's face fell. "Stanford?"

"Stanford."

"What…what about Harvard, or Yale, or something?" she stammered.

"I want to go to Stanford. It's a really nice school." Jess said, losing his previously planned reasons as he watched his crestfallen girlfriend.

"It's in…California," Rory pointed out.

"I know," Jess said softly.

"But…it's in…California," Rory stammered again.

Jess nodded.

"California, Jess!"

He nodded again, unsure of what to say.

"California!" Rory squealed, pushing her chair away from the table.

"Rory…" he pleaded.

"No! No, Jess, no!" Rory yelled, pushing him aside and slamming her bedroom door shut.

"Rory!" Jess banged on the door as he listened to Rory slam things inside her room.

"Go away, Jess!" she yelled from behind the door.

"Rory, come on! I don't want to fight about this!" he shouted back.

"Like hell you don't." He heard the squeak of her bed as she threw herself across it. Rory brought her knees up to her chest and leaned against the headboard.

"Rory…" he pleaded again. "Why are you so upset?"

"Because you promised me we'd be together next year," she snapped.

"Who said we won't be together next year? I don't recall ever saying that," Jess said as he retracted his fist from the door.

Both Rory and Jess were silent before Rory finally let Jess in her bedroom.

"What about a long distance relationship?" Jess asked.

"Or I could see about finding a school in…" Rory paused as Jess put his finger to her lips.

"You are not giving up your dream of Harvard University to follow me across the country. I won't allow it." Jess sat at the edge of Rory's bed.

"I just want this to work, Jess," Rory said softly as she stared at her bedspread.

"Rory," Jess started, tilting Rory's chin up so she was at eye level, "I've always wanted this to work. It won't matter if I'm in New Haven, Boston, or Palo Alto. I love you," he said, "and I want this."

"I know," Rory conceded. "I'm just…surprised. Maybe even a little upset." She nestled herself closer to Jess and he kissed the top of her head.

"You still mad at me?" he asked softly.

"No," she replied, pulling him closer on the bed.

* * *

"California?" Lorelai gasped as Luke poured her coffee. "Why California?"

"It's really the best option," Luke said, trying to convince himself as well as Lorelai. "We'd both be saving a lot of money with that scholarship. It's a good thing. Really, it's great."

Lorelai nodded and sipped her coffee. "Rory didn't say anything. Does she know?"

"He's over there now. I sent him equipped with chocolate chip muffins and coffee. I just hope she takes it well." Luke sighed and leaned against the counter. "It's going to be weird, not having Jess around after the next few months. I don't know how I'm going to do this."

"What do you mean?" Lorelai asked as Luke turned away from her. "I thought you couldn't wait to boot Jess out of your bachelor pad. He's been in the way for years just causing you trouble."

Shaking his head, Luke rubbed his hands over his face. "The kid is almost my own. I've done everything for him. I taught him how to drive, cook, clean…everything I could. It's not my fault he was genetically set up to drink, smoke, and be a troublemaker." Luke sighed again and looked Lorelai in the eye. "I don't know if I'm ready to let him go yet. I have to – it's a part of parenting that you're going through too. At least you know Rory is coming home after college. With Jess, I can't count on him for Thanksgiving."

"Luke!"

"It's true; it's _Jess_. He's not attached like that. I know he appreciates the stuff I've done for him his whole life, but it's _Jess._ I can't count on him to know where his roots are."

"But you're family, Luke," Lorelai pointed out.

"Doesn't matter. Jess will be Jess. If he wants to come home, he'll come home. If he wants to lay down new roots and be as independent as he wants, he'll do that." Luke flipped off the coffee pot and started brewing fresh coffee. Lorelai watched as he focused on measuring the right amount of water and coffee grounds.

"Rory's coming home for holidays. Jess will be here, too," she said quietly.

Luke spun around, still holding the coffee pot. "We'll see," he said.

Lorelai stared down at her nearly empty cup of coffee. She drained the liquid from the bottom of the cup and slid off her stool. "I'll be in later," she said.

Luke simply waved before pressing the on button to start the coffee.

Lorelai was ready to collapse on the sofa when she arrived home. It was a Sunday that she wasn't used to working. Usually, Jess and Rory would spend their Sundays together because it was his day off. On those days without Rory, Lorelai would try to do simple things around the house or pop in an old movie.

"Rory! Jess!" she called as she shut the door with her foot. "I thought maybe we could all get something to eat like old times." She kicked her heels at the bottom of the stairs. "Are you two here or am I talking to myself for no rea-" Lorelai stopped short at her daughter's bedroom door. "Rory?" Lorelai pushed the door open and gasped. Rory and Jess were curled up on the little bed with the covers pulled partially over them. Rory was wearing a little pink tank top, but Jess's button up shirt had been discarded on the floor with Rory's shorts. Her face was nestled into Jess's bare chest and she was sleepily tracing her finger along his stomach.

Lorelai knocked on the doorframe, startling both teenagers. Rory sat up and blushed, while Jess wrapped the purple sheet around his bare chest. Clearing her throat, Lorelai stood menacingly in the doorway. "Someone better start explaining, and it better be good." She folded her arms across her chest and leaned again the doorframe. "Now."

Jess smiled sheepishly and reached for his button down on the floor. "Nothing happened," he swore, shoving his limbs in the arms of the shirt. "We didn't do anything."

Rory remained silent until Jess jabbed her with his elbow. "Mom. It isn't what it looks like," she said timidly.

"Please don't tell me Jess was hot, so he just took his shirt off. I'm not buying that," she said sternly.

"Okay, maybe it is what it looks like," Jess started as he buttoned his shirt. "But we didn't have sex."

Lorelai sighed. "Fine, but I don't like this." She pointed at both Rory and Jess. "I don't like this one bit. I'm going to have to deal with it eventually, but I'm not going to like it. You," she pointed to Jess, "are going to use a condom. And you," she pointed to Rory, "are going on the pill. Now, I am going to leave the room, and when I come back, everyone will be fully clothed and groomed. The bed will be made, my daughter will have pants on, and you, mister, will wipe that smug "I almost got some" look off your face. Understand?" Both Rory and Jess nodded in succession and Lorelai slammed the door after them.

Rory chewed her lip as Jess continued to fasten the buttons on his shirt. "You should probably put these on," he said, reaching down for Rory's shorts. "Oh, wait. And these." Jess reached under the bedclothes and handed Rory her pink panties.

"Jess!" She blushed and swatted his arm. She slid her underwear on under the blankets and sat up.

"You okay?" he asked gently as he fastened the last button on his shirt.

Rory nodded as she pulled back the covers. She yanked the shorts up her leg, buttoned and zippered, and turned to face her boyfriend, who was still lounging in her bed. "We didn't go all the way," she said matter of factly. "I'm fine."

"You don't look fine," Jess said. He peeled back the covers and swung his legs out of Rory's bed.

"My mom just caught us asleep together with half our clothes off. How I am supposed to react to that? I told her I would let her know when I was ready to have sex with you, and I haven't talked to her yet," Rory said while she fished through her sock drawer.

"Are…are you ready?" Jess asked. He straightened his sagging socks while he watched Rory tug on her own pair.

"I wouldn't have let you touch me if I wasn't ready for something," she said, sitting on the bed next to Jess. "I don't know," she reconsidered.

"We, uh, haven't talked about this," Jess said nervously, ruffling the back of his hair. "Maybe we should."

Rory leaned back on the bed and sighed. "Jess, please be honest with me." Jess nodded and perched himself on his elbows. "How many girls have you had sex with?"

Jess tilted his head back to look at the ceiling. "I regret not being a virgin," he admitted. "If I knew my first time could have been with you, I'd have waited."

"Jess, how many," she demanded softly.

"Five," he whispered.

"Five?" she asked, shocked.

"I'm sorry, Rory," he said lightly, brushing a stray section of hair from her face. "You know how it used to be."

Looking away from Jess, "I know. I remember. It's just…hard to accept."

"I'm glad I'll be your first," Jess said. "I want it to be special, and I want you to be ready. I don't want to force this on you because you think I need to have sex. I need you," he said truthfully.

Rory nodded. "Jess…"

"What?"

"You'll get checked out for STDs?" she asked meekly, unsure of embarrassing Jess.

Jess smirked gently as he hugged Rory. "I already did. A few weeks ago to be certain. I want to protect you."

"Such a sap," Rory said jokingly as she pushed Jess over on the bed. "I love it."

"Are all your clothes intact?" Lorelai asked as she pushed the door open. Her hand covered her eyes as she stood in the doorway.

"Mom, it's okay. You can look." Lorelai removed her hand from in front of her eyes and sat on the bed with Rory and Jess. "You guys want Chinese food tonight?"

"Sure, sounds good," Rory said as Jess nodded.

"Why don't I send Jess off with the list so we can talk?" Lorelai asked as she put her arm around Rory.

Rory and Jess exchanged glances. "Great," Jess said.

"It's on the counter with some cash," Lorelai said. "If you want to add something to it, go ahead."

Jess nodded and shoved his sneakers on his feet. "I'll be back soon." He closed the door lightly and left Lorelai and Rory alone.

"Want to tell me what's going on, kid?" Lorelai asked. "I thought you were going to talk to me when you decided to have sex with Jess."

"I didn't really decide," Rory started. "It just…happened today. We didn't even do it," she said. "I think…I think I'm ready," she stuttered softly. "Is…is that okay?"

"Well, I'm not tickled that my baby is going to be deflowered in the near future," Lorelai pulled Rory in a tight hug. "I know as well as you do that Jess isn't a virgin. What's he doing to keep you safe?" she asked.

"He's all clean. He got checked for STDs and everything. He wants to keep me safe," Rory said.

"Okay," Lorelai replied skeptically.

"No, really. Mom, you know how Jess is."

"I know. He's always there to protect you. He's your best friend, honey. You're both close to nineteen years old. I trust the two of you to be safe; I really do." Lorelai hugged Rory tighter. "You'll tell me when it happens?" she asked.

Rory nodded. "I'll tell you when it happens," she agreed.


	20. Nice Ring To It

Wow. Twenty chapters. I wasn't sure how long this story would be when I started in December, but here it is. Twenty chapters. For everyone that has, thanks for sticking with me. Special thanks to DiehardJavaJunkie14 (Java) for help with this chapter.

The reviews seemed to have tapered off since Jess decided to attend Stanford. I hope everyone keeps reading, because there is a distinct plan for this story that I've set up.

On that note, thanks for the reviews on chapter nineteen: DiehardJavaJunkie14, lillitgirlx2, ShaolinQueen, Jeremy Shane, Curley-Q, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, krymsunkiss52, mizskitles220, Literati44, and 19merz86.

**Disclaimer:** Nope. I still don't own it.

* * *

"I need two replacement writers for the sports season wrap up." Paris paced in front of the nervous reporters sitting at the table. "Any takers or do I need to assign this article to you bunch of chickens?" She slammed the folders in her hand on the table. "Fine. I'll go with reliability then. Gilmore and Mariano."

"What?" Rory groaned, standing. "Paris, that's not fair. We both have in depth articles to work on, and neither of us knows anything about sports."

"You're the only reporters I can depend on," Paris explained as she handed Rory the manila folder filled with newspaper clippings and notes.

"This is ridiculous," Jess snapped as he flipped through the folder. "How are we supposed to finish this by next week?"

Paris leaned against her desk. "What's the problem? You have nine days to finish that article."

Groaning, Jess held his hair back with his hands. "Jess, we'll just do it," Rory said. "Paris needs our help."

"Meeting adjourned!" Paris barked. The remaining reporters scampered out of the room. "It will be a great article, won't it?" she asked between clenched teeth.

Rory and Jess nodded before following the pack. "She's gone mad, I'm telling you," Jess whispered harshly.

"Jess, it's Paris. Just go with it and we won't have any problems for the rest of the year. She will find a way to make our lives hell in the course of the remaining month," Rory said under her breath.

"Okay, fine," Jess relented. "My place or yours?"

* * *

"What are you two doing?" Luke asked as he passed by Rory and Jess. They had pushed together two tables and were sitting at opposite ends. Notebooks, textbooks, and various writing implements were scattered across both tables.

"Paris has gone power mad," Jess declared, flipping a page.

"Last issue of The Franklin," Rory explained as she jotted something down on the page in front of her.

"And you're down here because…?" Luke leaned against the counter in expectation of a logical rationalization.

"Burgers," they clarified swiftly in unison.

"Oh, and more table space," Rory added vigilantly.

Wordlessly, Luke walked away from the table and to the kitchen. Rory and Jess continued to work diligently, barely acknowledging each other's presence. Eventually, her concentration started to taper off. Rory was unable to focus on her article and incessantly peered up at Jess. After a few times, she met a pair of chocolate eyes rather than the ruffled top of his head.

"You're looking at me," he pointed out. Rory glanced back at her notebook and attempted to string her words into intelligent sentences. "You don't need to be embarrassed. It's socially acceptable to be caught ogling your incredibly hot boyfriend," Jess remarked with a smirk.

Grinning, Rory flung her eraser at Jess's head. It bounced off a tuff of his hair and rolled across the diner floor. "I'm going to miss this," she declared solemnly as Jess tossed the eraser back at her. As soon as her pen fell from her hand, Rory knew the article had taken the backseat.

Jess knew that as well. He rested his own pen in the binding of his textbook and stared at Rory for a moment. "We should probably talk about that, shouldn't we?" Nervously, Jess ran his hand through his hair and glanced around the diner. He hoped that Luke would appear with their burgers in a timely fashion. On one hand, he wanted to get the conversation of leaving off his chest. Then, at the same time, he simply wanted to avoid the inevitable. It had been a week since he voiced the decision, and neither had even mentioned it in passing. Jess glanced around the diner in apprehension once more and tried to think of what to say. "Rory," he started, "this isn't going to change anything."

Nodding, Rory picked her pen off the page and started to write. Jess sighed and leaned across the tables to grab the pen out of Rory's hand. "Jess!" she exclaimed, trying to smudge the long tail of her letter S.

"We've been avoiding this for days," Jess said. "I want to talk about this."

"Okay," Rory conceded. "Let's talk."

"Burgers," Luke interrupted. He waited for the pair to maneuver their things before setting the plates down in front of them. Without saying anything else, Luke walked away from the tables.

Jess straightened the onions on his burger while Rory squirted ketchup on hers. Neither said a word while they chewed on the afternoon meal.

"We have the whole summer," Jess said before wiping the dollop of mustard off his black pants in frustration. He licked his finger and tried to unsuccessfully smear the condiment off the knee.

"But you're not going to be here for my birthday," Rory said feebly.

"Neither are you," Jess pointed out. "You'll be in Beantown and there are other means of communication."

"Not the same," Rory murmured softly. They had long abandoned their burgers and were now avoiding each other's eyes.

"But you know that I'll be back for you," Jess said, the corner of his mouth tipping up in a slight smile.

Nodding, Rory picked up her burger and took another bite. "We'll get used to it, won't we?"

"But we don't have to start now. It's not like I'm leaving tomorrow," Jess said as he rolled a fry through the puddle of ketchup at the side of his plate.

Rory stared at her burger and watched Jess munch on his fries while trying to avoid dripping on his books. She allowed herself to smile, knowing that they would have plenty of time together before he took off for California.

* * *

"Where is he?" Paris demands as she stalked down the hallway. The students that had gathered at their lockers started to back off. "Jess Mariano!" she hollered.

Jess looked up just in time for Paris to shove him. Being skinny was never a problem for him but, because he was so skinny, Jess lurched over and fell in his locker. He raised his eyebrow at Paris while he sat on his AP Calculus and AP Physics textbooks and corresponding notebooks. She shifted her eyes while a few on-lookers pointed at the disheveled senior sitting in his locker.

"You know, you could give me a hand instead of just standing there," Jess mumbled. Paris offered her hand and pulled Jess out of his locker. Immediately after he brushed himself off, Paris slammed him against the lockers. "Okay, first off, you have to stop doing that," Jess said as he shut his locker door. "Second, what the hell is your problem?" he snapped, picking his backpack off the floor.

"You! You are my problem," Paris barked as she followed Jess down the hallway.

Flustered, Jess threw his hands in the air. "What do you want from me?"

"I could settle for second best when it came to Rory. I really could. I wouldn't admit it to her face, but Salutatorian would have been fine with me. She's going to be Valedictorian and I lost out on my high school dream. But you!" Paris raised her voice, causing Jess to back away. "You're going to cost me Salutatorian. How did you even manage to do it? You were seventh in line when the year started. Somehow, you worked your way to third by the start of the second semester. You are a full point and a half ahead of me. How?" she demanded.

Jess backed up to the lockers and rested against them. "Me?" he asked. "I'm ahead of you? I _beat_ you?"

"Don't be so smug about it," Paris snapped. "I am going to be on your back until you're down to third in line again. Don't think I won't." She turned on her heel stalked off without another word, but Jess watched her leave with a smirk painted on his face.

"Salutatorian. Nice ring to it," Jess said to the empty hallway before heading to the cafeteria for lunch.

* * *

Jess was lounging on his bed wearing sweats and a ratty tee while he engaged in a book. Every so often, Luke would glance up from cooking and watch him turn a page. In noticing that dinner was almost ready, Jess dog-eared his page and slid off the bed. Wordlessly, he walked over to the cabinet and started setting the table. If Luke noticed, he didn't mention that he had.

"It's been a while," Luke stated as he scooped the pasta primavera on both plates. "I closed up early for this," he admitted, replacing the pan on the stove.

"You did?" Jess asked, sliding into his chair with two bottles of water. He handed one bottle to Luke, who uncapped it immediately to take a sip.

"I miss having dinner with you," Luke said. "We're either eating separately in the diner or you're at Rory's house eating with them."

Jess nodded. "I've always eaten with Rory, though." He slid the red peppers on top of his pasta and took a bite.

"That's not what I mean," Luke said. "It's just been so long since it was just the two of us. I miss it."

"Aw, shucks, Uncle Luke," Jess teased. "You know what? I'm going to miss eating dinner with you when I'm away."

Luke stared down at his plate. "Jess, are you going to come back?"

"Come back?" Jess set his fork on his napkin. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, after college ends. Rory has her roots set here with Lorelai, but what about you?"

"I haven't thought about it," Jess admitted, shuffling a hand through his hair. "I guess it would depend on my career, wouldn't it?"

"Yeah. I guess it would." Luke turned back to the pasta on his plate and started eating in silence.

"What if…what if I decided not to come back?" Jess asked cautiously.

Luke paused in mid bite to look at his nephew. "I guess I would have to accept that," he said, attempting to push the sadness out of his voice.

"And if I did come back?"

"Your bed will still be here," Luke replied, hoping for the best.

Jess sighed and chewed his pasta. "I don't always want to be tied to Stars Hollow," he said finally, "but I'll be around. I'll always be around."

"It's good to know," Luke said softly. "I get that you're almost nineteen and you want to see other places and experience other things."

"Thanks, Luke," he said gently before uncapping his water.

Luke intended to eat the rest of the meal in silence, but felt there was something else that needed to be said. He watched as Jess glanced around the apartment while he chewed. "You're thinking about something," he pointed out.

"No, I'm not," Jess protested as he shoveled another bite past his lips.

"You are. I know that look. You okay?" Luke asked.

Jess looked down in thought while he tried to rearrange his words. "I…" he started feebly. "What if I'm not ready to leave?"

"Leave here?"

"Leave for California. What if I get there and regret my decision?" Jess asked.

"Then you can transfer," Luke said. "With your grades and test scores, I'm sure you could have your pick of nearby schools."

Jess sighed and glanced around the apartment again. "Thanks," he said, "for raising me."

"It's no problem, Jess," Luke reassured him. "Just don't forget that you're always welcome here."

They finished the meal in a comfortable silence. After dinner, they both cleaned up like old times and turned on an episode of CSI. They watched intently, as usual, and tried to solve the crime before the characters. Near the end, Jess started to drift off on the sofa. As Jess fell asleep, he tried to imagine how his future would pan out; and as Luke watched him, he tried to imagine his life without Jess.


	21. Prom

Sorry for the delay with this chapter. It was a tough one to write. If you're interested in Rory's Prom dress, there's a link in my profile. I also want to thank **DiehardJavaJunkie14** for the beta. You rock.

Thanks for the reviews on chapter twenty: gilmorefanforever, DiehardJavaJunkie14, krymsunkiss52, lillitgirlx2, kathi-ryn, ShaolinQueen, Curley-Q, Jeremy Shane, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, Meredith-Grey, ultimategilmoregirl, mizskitles220, LorLukealways, and Literati44.

Disclaimer: I still don't own anything.

* * *

"You know what Friday is, don't you?" Jess asked as he stopped kissing Rory's neck.

Rory ruffled his hair and leaned over to nibble lightly on his ear lobe. "How could I forget about Prom?" she asked delicately.

"Don't know," he asked, smoothing back her hair. "We've been so busy for the past two weeks that I almost forgot." Jess ran his hands over Rory's shoulders and carefully moved aside her thick tank top straps.

"Hey, Jess?" Rory asked lightly as she traced a sloppy circle on his stomach.

"Hmm?" he asked, not taking his lips away from Rory's shoulder.

"Can we talk?" As soon as she said it, his mouth left Rory's shoulder and Jess pulled his shirt over his stomach. He collapsed down next to her on the bed and waited for her to speak. Nervously, Rory scratched the back of her neck.

"What's wrong?" Jess asked.

"You know how on Prom night, it's…" Rory paused to search for the right words. "You know…" she trailed off at a loss and wrung her hands.

"You need to give me more to work with, Rory," Jess requested, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.

"Okay," she murmured. "Everyone has sex on Prom night, and I…" She paused to wring her hands again. "I don't want to do that," she admitted meekly. "It's too…cliché for us."

Jess nodded. "I understand. I wasn't going to seduce you in a hotel room or anything." He chuckled at the thought and pushed a section of hair out of his eyes. "I love you, Rory."

A thin blush spread across the apples of her cheeks before she leaned over to kiss him. "I love you too."

"Now all I'm worried about is the limo," Jess said.

"Why?" Rory asked, turning on her side.

"Because it's Paris. The fact that she's even going to Prom blows my mind. I mean, why would she even want us to be in that limo? Half the time she can't even decide if she hates us or not."

"Paris is…a complicated person," Rory said. "She's been nice since we picked up the slack on the sports article."

Jess rolled his eyes and sat up. "What if we drove to Prom?"

"In a car?" Rory asked, cocking her head to the side.

"Yeah, a car. My car." Jess smirked and leaned against the headboard.

"But…your license."

"Is off suspension. Last week," Jess answered.

"But what about the car? It looks like crap," Rory admitted honestly.

"Luke spotted me some cash to get it cleaned up. We're getting it painted black. Nice and sleek…new interior and everything." Jess smiled. "It's almost like getting a new car."

"Well," Rory hesitated, "I would prefer the privacy of your car to a limo with Paris. If it really does look good, let's opt out of the limo." Jess swooped down to kiss Rory and parted her lips with his tongue. "You and Paris are really on the outs, aren't you?"

"You have no idea," Jess said, kissing her collarbone.

* * *

"Look at you getting all dolled up for Prom," Luke teased as Jess fumbled with his shirt. He had buttoned it crooked and was trying to figure out which button he missed.

"Ha. Okay. Go ahead and make fun of me," Jess said, threading his belt though the loops on his tux pants.

"You've never worn a tux before. It's actually pretty amusing."

"Thanks. You know, I can do this in the bathroom. I didn't realize I would have a spectator." Jess buckled his belt and reached for the silk tie on his bed. Luke didn't say anything as he observed the struggle with the filmy material. Scowling, Jess turned away from Luke and adjusted his tie. Luke peered over the top of his magazine and watched Jess button the matching vest. "You're not taking pictures," Jess warned as he uncapped his hair gel and slid his fingers through his hair.

"Wasn't planning on it," Luke said. He watched Jess spike the front of his hair before turning back to the magazine. "Rory liked the car?" he asked.

"She didn't like riding the bus to and from Hartford, but the paint job made it up to us." Jess capped the bottle of hair gel and disappeared into the bathroom to wash his sticky hands. "Guess I'm off," Jess said finally, shrugging on the tuxedo jacket. As an after thought, he grabbed the corsage off his dresser.

"Don't get in any trouble," Luke warned, looking up from the magazine again.

"I'll be back late. Don't wait up," Jess said before reaching for the doorknob.

"How late?" Luke questioned before Jess was able to open the door.

"Tomorrow late," Jess elaborated, opening the door.

"Rough estimate?"

"Before you wake up," Jess said quickly, escaping through the open door.

When Jess rang the bell at the Gilmore residence, Lorelai answered. "Jess, wow," she commented. "You clean up nice." Smirking, he followed Lorelai into the living room. "She'll be down in a few minutes. She's upstairs getting ready." Lorelai sat at one end of the couch and Jess sat at the other end. Jess wrung his hands nervously in his lap. He had tried avoiding Lorelai since the incident in Rory's bed. This time, he just had to suck it up. "She's growing up and I know that. I just…wanted to let you know that I trust you."

"You do?" he asked cautiously.

"Well, more than any other eighteen year old boy ready to steal my daughter's virginity." Lorelai noticed that his face paled as she spoke. "But don't worry;" she said quickly, "I don't want to talk about that."

Jess nodded. "Thanks."

"We've had our differences in the past, but I like you. You've always been Rory's best friend," Lorelai continued.

"Mom!" Rory shouted from upstairs, breaking through both of their thoughts.

"Hang on," she said briefly before starting up the stairs.

Jess was left in the living room, grasping the corsage box. Craning his neck, he could hear the process of picture taking. Lorelai stomped back down the stairs with her new digital camera.

"Say cheese!" Quickly, she snapped the picture as Jess flung his arms over his face. "Aw, you're no fun." Lorelai pouted as she directed her attention to the clinking of high-heeled shoes at the top of the stairs.

"I've always wanted to do this," Rory said as she started down the stairs slowly.

Jess stood to watch Rory advance down the stairs. She was wearing a blue dress that clung to her upper body before flaring into a wide skirt. Rory's chestnut curls were twisted up elaborately with tendrils of hair bouncing by her face. A smile graced his lips and Lorelai slyly snapped a picture of him. He rolled his eyes at her, but didn't stop smiling. "You look…wow," he said softly as she placed her hand over his. "Gorgeous," he corrected himself as soon as he rediscovered his voice.

Lorelai snapped picture after picture while Jess secured the corsage on Rory's wrist and Rory struggled with the boutonnière, stabbing Jess in the process. The candid photographs multiplied as Lorelai snapped as many of wounded Jess as possible, and Rory snapped pictures of Lorelai struggling and stabbing Jess with the boutonnière. Finally, after snapping a picture of Jess adhering his own boutonnière, and a full memory card, Lorelai gave them a slight push out the door.

"Have a good time!" she called after them. "Don't stay out too late."

* * *

Rory hacked into her chicken before it rolled off the plate and on the floor. "Shit," she cursed under her breath. Beside her, Jess chuckled good-naturedly.

"Here," he said, stabbing the fork into his chicken and setting it on Rory's plate. "You would think Chilton would let us use a better knife than a butter knife," he said, studying the dull piece of cutlery. "You're going to try the same approach?" he asked, watching Rory attempt to hack the second piece of chicken. "I can't pull another one out of my pocket."

Rory giggled and surrendered her utensils. "Like you're going to do any better."

"Take this fork and stick in the there," he instructed. Jess stabbed the other fork in the opposite end of the chicken and attempted to saw it into pieces. "Better?" he asked, extracting his fork.

Rory nodded. "Much better. Thank you." She leaned over and planted a chaste kiss on his lips before digging into the chicken.

"Interested in Prom court at all?" Jess asked as he directed his eyes up at the microphone.

"Nah." Rory shook her head and scooted her chair closer to Jess.

"Rory Gilmore!" Rory's head shot up from the plate.

"What?" she whispered to Jess.

"I, ah, think you're Prom queen." Jess shifted in his chair as they called Rory's name again.

"Come with me," she requested, knowing that they would have the dance floor all to themselves after Jess was announced as her king.

Jess stood off to the side as Rory was presented with a crown. Smirking, he noticed the blush creep across her porcelain cheeks.

"Joining Rory Gilmore as Prom King of Chilton…will be Tristan DuGrey!"

Jess backed away as Tristan breezed past him. "Jessie," he said with a smirk.

"Now please join your queen and king on the dance floor!"

Tristan reached for Rory's hand and she reluctantly took his. "Mary," he greeted her. "What a pleasure."

"Whatever, Tristan."

Irritated, Jess raked his fingers through his hair and headed back to their table. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Tristan sweep Rory into a friendly embrace.

Rory noticed Tristan staring at her. "What do you want, Tristan?" she demanded as she placed her hands on his shoulders. They still stood a few inches apart, and Tristan had yet to secure his hands below her waist.

"You're really with Jess, Mary?" Tristan asked.

"I don't see how that's any of your business, but yes." Rory peeked behind Tristan's shoulder to catch a glimpse of Jess, but he had gotten up from the table.

"He's the kind of guy that likes sex, Mary," he said snidely.

Rory scoffed. "You have no right to judge Jess. If you don't remember, you cheated on me," she reminded him.

"Just looking out for you. Warning you that he might get tired of sweet, innocent Mary." Tristan smirked and let go of Rory's waist.

"Go away, Tristan." Rory broke away from the dance floor in search of Jess. Removing the toy crown, she tossed it on the table. She held the skirt of her dress up as she glanced around the lobby. Leaning outside the window was Jess, and he was nursing a cigarette. Rory slid back the glass door and joined him on the dark patio.

"You done?" he asked, breathing smoke out of his nose and mouth. His tone was icy, and Rory had never heard him speak like that.

Rory snatched the cigarette from his fingers and tossed it over the balcony. "There's nothing going on. Tristan was just being his usual condescending self." Jess lowered himself on the bench and Rory stared at him. "Come on. Let's go back in. There's still an hour and a half left." Rory tugged his arm and he willingly stood back up.

"Okay."

"Hey, can we go outside?" Rory asked suddenly.

"Outside?" Jess asked.

"To the car."

"I thought you didn't want to leave." Jess cocked his head to the side questioningly.

"I don't. I just want to go outside."

Shrugging, Jess swept Rory aside to the parking lot. "Okay. Car. Now what?"

"Back seat," she requested.

Jess didn't question, but he did unlock the car and slid into the backseat. Before he could say anything, Rory leaned over to kiss him. For a moment, that was all they did. Jess felt Rory's cold fingers snake between the buttons on his shirt. He swatted her hand away, but it gravitated back to start working apart the buttons. "Hey, hey, hey." Jess wrenched his shirt free from Rory's fingers as one of the buttons snagged. "What are you doing?"

"What do you think I'm doing?" Rory asked as she reached for his belt buckle.

"Whoa, Rory. Come on. Wait a second." Jess held Rory's wrists tightly and looked her straight in the eye. "What's going on?" he demanded softly.

Rory looked up at Jess before ripping her hand free. "I don't want to have sex in your car," she said suddenly.

"I don't either!" Jess exclaimed, straightening his shirt. "What made you think we were going to have sex tonight?" he asked. "We promised, not on Prom night."

Sighing, Rory sunk down next to Jess. "I don't know."

"It was something Tristan said, wasn't it?" he demanded.

"No," she denied quickly.

Jess cracked his knuckles and flung the door open. "I'm going to kill him."

"No…no. Jess, wait." Rory tore after him as fast as she could in heels. She had seen Jess angry before, but never like this. He was small compared to Tristan, so if he really did fight him…

Jess was standing by the entrance to the ballroom when Rory finally caught up to him. "Who the hell was I kidding?" he said. "I'm not going to fight your ex boyfriend."

Rory smiled. "Thank you," she said softly. "Now, can we please go back and enjoy the rest of Prom?"

"After you," he requested, slinging his arm around Rory's bare shoulders.

* * *

"Tonight has been really nice," Rory said as she let her head fall on his shoulder. Neither was impressed by the music, but they still swayed on the dance floor. Jess had long ago abandoned his jacket and vest, and Rory was wearing his tie loosely around her neck.

Jess moved his hands lower on Rory's waist and tucked her closer. "You're right. This is nice."

"And the thing with Tristan?" she asked nervously as she felt his fingers stiffen at her waist.

"Completely forgotten," he answered. "Maybe we can even skip the party and go out."

"Out?" Rory asked. "There's not going to be anything open after midnight."

"Well," Jess started, "what about a drive through window? We can sit and talk. Burger and fries…"

"Sold," she said. "Now shut up and kiss me."

"As you wish."


	22. Pulled Away

This chapter is heavy compared to the sweetness in the last chapter. Rory's experiencing a bit of internal fear and doubt, coupled with the protests of another person she used to be close to a couple of years ago. By the next chapter, the crisis will probably be averted. Don't fret.

Thanks for all the reviews on chapter twenty one: gilmorefanforever, Kassandra27, kathi-ryn, ShaolinQueen, JessRory-DerekCasey, DiehardJavaJunkie14, Jeremy Shane, Meredith-Grey, Curley-Q, LorLukealways, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, mizskitles220, lillitgirlx2, ultimategilmoregirl, I-luv-jess-mariano, dtng4ever, Literati44, and anonymous.

Disclaimer: Nothing that looks familiar belongs to me.

* * *

"So, Jess spent the night." Lorelai poured a cup of coffee. Her daughter sat at the kitchen table with smudged make up and frazzled hair. "In your bed," she clarified.

Rory pushed up the strap of her red tank top and pulled her bare knees to her chest. When she had appeared in the kitchen, she was fully dressed in a tank and shorts. Lorelai knew that nothing had happened, but she needed the confirmation from her daughter. "Nothing happened," Rory swore quickly.

"Okay." Lorelai set the coffee pot back on the hot plate and joined Rory for a cup. "Then what did happen?"

Rory continued to pull at the strap of her tank top as she folded her legs on the kitchen chair. What had happened? She wasn't entirely sure of it herself. Scratching her head, Rory reached for the coffee cup. She wasn't thinking clearly at nine-thirty on a Saturday morning, and she had been surprised to find her mother awake when she wandered into the kitchen. In any case, she hadn't been prepared for confrontation, never mind a conversation.

"Rory?" she prompted.

"I…" she started nervously, picking at the tank top strap and avoiding eye contact. "I don't know."

Lorelai sighed. Perhaps the standard way of dealing with things wouldn't do this time around. "Rory…" she pressed.

"I think…" she started, "I think I may have had something to drink." It would have explained her musty performance at least.

Lorelai's face fell and Rory looked back at her coffee. "Rory…" She wanted to scold her, like any normal mother, but at the same time, she was curious as to what happened. "Was it Jess?"

Rory's head jerked up from the coffee mug. "No," she said quickly. It was Tristan, at the party, wasn't it? Wasn't he…?

No.

But then again, she wasn't sure.

"I need you to talk to me, Rory," Lorelai demanded. "I can't keep finding Jess cozy in your bed on sporadic days."

It was a reasonable request. Rory reached for the coffee mug and took a long sip before meeting her mother's eyes. She had never felt so uncomfortable in her entire life. Then again, she had never had a drunken heart to heart with her ex-boyfriend. That's what it was, wasn't it? At least, one could consider it that.

"Rory," she said softly. Lorelai knew her daughter would respond better if she were calm. "Where did you go last night? What did you do?"

McDonalds. Burgers. Fries. Steamed car windows. Jess. Tristan. Party? Beer. Vodka. Sex? No. There wasn't any sex. "I…we went to the party Madeline and Louise threw," she said cautiously. After McDonalds and _after_ Jess unzipped her dress and…

No.

"And what did you do at the party?"

Tristan handed her another red plastic cup and sat down next to her. She was wearing jeans and a red t-shirt and Jess…

Where was Jess?

Snuggled up in _her _bed with _her_ blankets and _her_ pillow. And how did he get there? He drove of, course. He drove them home, home to _her_ house. After…

No.

"We…" Rory started tentatively. "We talked, and I think…" She stopped. Lorelai was still waiting for an explanation, but her words turned to mush after hitting her teeth. "There was beer…" she started again. "Jess…" No. Jess barely had anything to drink. He was still wearing the button down shirt, but the top two buttons were left undone.

"How much did you have to drink?" Lorelai asked. She couldn't tell at the moment, but she knew most of it had probably worn off. Perhaps she should wake Jess…

"Three or four?" she answered tentatively, mentally counting her refills.

Even after the confession, Lorelai wasn't sure how to deal with Rory. She had never encountered a behavioral change that forced her to do play the parent card.

"I should be grounded," Rory offered while Lorelai continued to think.

She hated the idea of grounding her eighteen-year-old daughter. "What do you suggest we do, then?" she asked, trying to think of something petty that may not even count as a punishment. "No TV for a week?"

Rory nodded meekly. She didn't know what to do or say, and she certainly wasn't in a position to protest. "I'm stressed," Rory said, shifting her weight. "High school is almost over. I'm leaving for Boston in a few months, and Jess is leaving for California, which is across the country. I don't know what I'm supposed to do. I think…I think I went off the deep end last night."

Lorelai was relieved, not because her daughter had a breakdown, but because she was at least able to admit it to her mother. "I know, Sweets," she said soothingly, reaching out for Rory's hand.

"I think I'm going to take a shower. It might clear my head."

"Okay," Lorelai agreed, grabbing the newspaper from the edge of the table.

Rory sipped the remainder of her coffee as Lorelai flipped the pages in the paper. Setting down the cup, she tried to focus on the events of the night. Why had they even gone to the party? It was almost set in stone that they would just go to McDonalds and talks before heading back to Stars Hollow. Was the party her idea, or was it Jess's idea? No matter how hard she tried, Rory couldn't fit the events in a timeline.

* * *

The sheets were tacky with sweat when Jess finally woke up. His button down shirt was undone, exposing his simple white tee shirt underneath. Yawning, he sat up and stretched. He didn't mean to spend the night at Rory's, especially not in her bed where Lorelai would eventually find him. Stretching, he glanced around the room and eyed the closed door. The hand on her clock lingered near the ten, and he decided it was time to make an appearance.

Lorelai peered over her newspaper as Rory's door creaked open for the second time that morning. "Morning, Jess," she greeted him lightly, folding the paper and taking off her glasses. "Do you want some coffee?"

Nodding, Jess sunk into the chair across from her. "That'd be great." She stood to pour the coffee and slid the cup in front of him.

They sat in silence for a moment while Lorelai digested the previous night's events and the coffee slipped down Jess's esophagus. "So about last night…" Lorelai started.

"I can explain," Jess said quickly, swallowing the hot liquid in his mouth.

"This should be interesting," Lorelai mumbled as she shifted in the hard kitchen chair.

"We decided to make a late appearance at the party and we may have had a little to drink," he started.

"At least you're being honest."

"But I didn't drink much since I was going to drive. Y'know, figured I should be somewhat responsible." Jess twitched nervously in his seat, unsure of what else to say. "I went to talk to someone and Rory said she would be fine if I left for a moment. When I came back to find her, she was sitting on the couch with Tristan, so I figured I would keep my distance…"

"Tristan?" Lorelai asked. She hadn't heard either one of them mention him since the last blow up between Tristan and Jess.

"I don't know." Jess rubbed the back of his neck. "Something to do with what he said during their dance at the Prom."

"What?" Lorelai asked. She felt completely out of place in the conversation. Jess needed to learn how to back track.

"Rory and Tristan were Prom queen and king."

"Okay. Got it."

"They didn't look suspicious, so I figured I would just leave them alone. I can't stand Tristan, so I honestly didn't want to deal with him at all." Jess fingered the handle on his coffee mug and stared into the dark liquid. "But after a while, I figured we should get going. It was already late when we got there, and I didn't want to get back here too late."

"Reasonable." Lorelai nodded for him to continue.

"Mostly I wanted to get her away from Tristan, because he's an asshole." Jess paused again. "She smelled like alcohol, so I knew I needed to get her out of there. Rory can't drink." He shook his head. Lorelai questioned him with her eyes.

"She's a waif," he answered. Unsure of what else to say, he sipped mindlessly at his coffee. He knew she was drunk when he tried to carry her out to the car. She protested, but in a different way. She had pulled a button off his shirt before he set her down in the back seat in the hopes that she would sleep on the ride home. No such luck. Jess was almost afraid to leave the room last night. She snuggled up close to him and finally went to sleep. He, on the other hand, stared up at the ceiling and wondered what would happen in the morning.

"Go on," Lorelai encouraged him.

"There's not much else to say."

She nodded and set her glasses back on the bridge of her nose. She was done talking, and that was clear to Jess.

* * *

"You want to talk about last night?" Jess asked, snapping his book shut.

Rory looked up at him, shocked at his assertiveness. "I…" she started, staring at the page she had been reading. Finally, she set the book on the bridge and fell back on the wooden planks. "I don't know."

"Well, think about it. Now would be a great time for an explanation." He reopened his book while Rory stared up at the sky. He wasn't being unreasonable at all. Rory really did owe Jess an explanation for the night before, and the fact that everything seemed to be crashing down wouldn't cut it.

She leaned back on the wooden bridge and tried to clear her head. Closing her eyes, she tried to place the events of the night.

--

_"Hey Mary," Tristan greeted her, sitting down on the couch next her. She was nursing her third beer and was already starting to feel woozy._

_"What do you want, Tristan?" she snapping, taking the last few sips of beer. Shoving the empty cup aside, she turned to face her ex-boyfriend._

_"Oh, just wanted to talk. Need a refill?" Tristan grabbed her cup from the table and went off in search of more beer. Rory wasn't sure what she was doing or how she was feeling, but she needed this. Finals were fast approaching, she had competition for valedictorian, and Jess…Jess was leaving._

_"You're back," she stated quietly as Tristan handed her a cup. The contents were clear and smelled heavily of alcohol._

_"Couldn't find beer," Tristan said. "I thought maybe you'd be brave and try some vodka." Rory stared at the liquid before taking the plunge. It tasted disgusting, but it flowed past her beer-coated tongue. _

_"My Mary drinking." Tristan shook his head. "I never thought I'd see the day." Tristan sat up straight and took a hearty sip from his own cup. _

_"Tristan, what do you want?" Rory asked again, fingering the edge of the cup._

_"Wanted to say sorry," he said. Rory couldn't tell if he was teasing her or being truthful. It was Tristan, after all, and he was hardly ever easy to read._

_"Why?" Rory demanded._

_"You know. Cheating on you was bad."_

_"No kidding." Rory took a swig of vodka and looked back at Tristan. "Do you hate me that much?"_

_"What?" he asked, shocked by her question._

_"I'm with Jess now," she replied. "Why do you have to go and open old wounds? You know that I loved you, Tristan. Why do you have to go and do this now?"_

_"Because it's who I am." Tristan took a sip of his drink and faced Rory. "You deserved better than me, but do you really think Mariano is?"_

_"What do you mean?" Rory gritted her teeth. She hated when anyone talked about Jess in a derogatory manner._

_"He's not going to amount to anything. Grades and SAT scores aren't the ticket to success."_

_"What?" Rory asked._

_"He's fucked," Tristan said, a smirk starting to rise on his lips. "And he's going to take you down with him."_

_Rory looked up at Tristan. "Go," she said. "You're not interested in helping me. All you're doing is hurting my relationship with Jess."_

_"Please. Like you were that stable to begin with. Tell you what, I bet if you initiated anything physical with Jess that he would eventually pull away."_

_Rory felt like Tristan had just struck her with a brick. A cry of dissent caught in her throat, but she didn't feel like it was the time to protest. She didn't know if she even could. A tug came at her arm, and Jess tried to pull her from the fog. She chugged the rest of the vodka before letting him scoop her up._

_She was doubting what she shouldn't doubt. Tristan…don't listen to Tristan._

_But when she tugged at his shirt buttons, he pulled away._

_And when she reached for his belt, he pulled away._

_He gently caressed her before she fell asleep, but he trembled under her touch._

_And he pulled away. _


	23. Reconciliations and Speeches

Rory's tense, Jess is harsh. I scraped this chapter so many times that I wasted a tree.

Thanks for the reviews on chapter twenty-two:gilmorefanforever, kathi-ryn, Jeremy Shane, lillitgirlx2, DiehardJavaJunkie14, Curley-Q, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, Polly, dtng4ever, mizskitles220, Meredith-Grey, radiogirl, ShaolinQueen, and xliteratiwhorex.

Disclaimer: Not mine-not now, not ever. Borrowed lines belong to the writers and the show.

* * *

Rory sat up on the bridge and directed her attention to Jess. "You believe me when I say nothing happened?" she asked, folding her hands in her lap.

"Yes," he said simply, folding down the corner to mark his page. "That's not what I want to know."

Rory nodded and wrung her hands. "What…do you want to know?"

"Everything," Jess said. "Something was bothering you if you were drinking. You don't drink. You've never drank, and you hate when other people drink," he ranted.

"Tristan said…"

"Oh, again with Tristan. Great." Jess slapped the paperback against the bridge.

Rory shied away quickly. "Jess…"

"If you're still listening to Tristan, then I don't know what to say."

Rory cleared her throat. "He…you…" She paused, fumbling with her words. "You pulled away!" she accused, pointing her finger at Jess.

"What?" he asked, taken aback.

"In the car! In my room! Just like Tristan said you would!" she exclaimed.

"I'm sorry!" he yelled. "I hoped you'd be sober when we first had sex!" he spat. Rory backed away from him. "And why would you listen to that jackass? We have years of friendship behind us! He forfeited the right to an opinion when he kissed that slut behind the building!"

"I…"

"And another thing…" Jess paused. "For Christ's sake, I want to have sex with you, not do this, you know, one sided thing!" he declared, fumbling over his statement.

Rory perked up. "What?"

"Jeez. Why are you obsessing over me not wanting to do this? You're Rory. I'm pacing myself."

"Oh."

"I don't want to fuck this up," he affirmed. "I love you."

She nodded. "I'm sorry about last night," she said timidly. "I'm a little… apprehensive about the changes," she continued. "It's still weird that we're graduating and leaving and we'll be at opposite ends of the country."

That was why she was being insecure. Jess inched closer to Rory and draped his arm around her shoulders. "You don't have to worry about a thing." She snuggled closer into his chest and he rocked her gently on the bridge.

* * *

"Where are the kids?" Lorelai asked as she hopped up on the stool.

"They're upstairs," Luke said as he set down a cup for Lorelai's coffee.

"Right. Finals week." Lorelai watched him pour the coffee and snatched up the cup as soon as he finished.

"You're tense today," Luke said before turning away with the pot.

Squinting, "Rory drank at that party. I know nothing happened besides that, but I can't seem to figure her out anymore." Lorelai sighed. "What am I supposed to do?"

"I'm sorry; you're asking me for parenting advice?" Luke scoffed and leaned against the counter.

"Who else I am supposed to ask?"

"Oh, gee, I don't know. Maybe someone with a kid?" Luke asked, raising his eyebrow.

"You have Jess," Lorelai pointed out aimlessly.

"Your point being...?" Luke challenged.

"You know how to deal with this kind of stuff," Lorelai pressed.

Luke sighed. "What stuff?"

Frustrated, Lorelai leaned closer to Luke. "Didn't you hear me? She drank at that party," she repeated.

"So Rory drank. You already had your fair share of alcohol at eighteen, didn't you?" Lorelai nodded. "Hey, I liked beer at eighteen." He raised his eyebrows again.

"I just didn't expect it," Lorelai said softly.

"She's a teenager and she's dating Jess. That alone would make me want to do shots." Lorelai shook her head, ignoring Luke, and downed a gulp of coffee.

"She said she was stressed," Lorelai reasoned.

"There you go," Luke said. "At least there's a reason." He pulled his arms off the counter.

"Where are you going?" Lorelai asked as he turned in the other direction.

"Checking on them," he said simply. "Thought they might be hungry by now."

"Okay." Lorelai swung her legs absentmindedly under the counter.

He was cautious in opening the door. Many times when Luke would come upstairs, Rory and Jess would be caught in a lip lock. Other times, they were lounging in close quarters on the bed or couch. Without knocking, Luke twisted the doorknob and let himself in the apartment. The two teens were seemingly unaffected by the adult in the room.

Jess was flopped across his bed with a European history textbook hovering over his face. His eyes scanned over the highlighted sections and briefly flicked away from the text in Luke's direction.

Rory was sitting cross-legged on the couch working through sample calculus problems. She looked up quickly at Luke and her eyes darted back to the page. Twirling the pencil between her fingers, she studied the number staring up at her on the calculator screen.

Luke cleared his throat. It took a moment, but Jess lowered his textbook and Rory dropped her pencil. Clearly, he had captured their attention. "You want something to eat?" he asked. Both teens shrugged, and Luke was thoroughly surprised at their nonchalance. "Burgers and fries?" he prompted.

"Burgers and fries," they droned, forcing their attention back to the books.

With a shake of his head, Luke turned around and exited the apartment with their apathetic order. As soon as the door was closed, Rory peered up at Jess from her calculator. "You're quiet."

"I'm studying," he mumbled, flipping the page.

Nodding, "You're still mad about the other day."

Frustrated, Jess slammed his textbook on the bed and it bounced on the mattress. "Huh. That's funny, I thought we made up," he said with a scowl.

Rory blushed furiously. "I was just…checking."

"You never needed to check," Jess pointed out callously. "Good thing you talked to Tristan."

"Hey! Not fair!" Rory squeaked.

"Are you that insecure about our relationship that you need to trust him?" Jess asked, swinging his legs over the side of the bed.

"No," she said, "it's just that you're leaving…"

"You're selfish," Jess interrupted with a sneer. "Poor, sweet, innocent Rory Gilmore isn't getting what she wants from this deal." Jess snapped up the book from the end of his bed and flipped to the next highlighted section.

Her mouth gaped open in shock. She had finally pushed Jess over the edge. "I…" she paused, her lower lip trembling.

Jess, satisfied with himself for getting his feelings off his chest, leaned back into the pillows to study.

A thick tear rolled down Rory's cheek. Their relationship had deteriorated in the past couple of days. She didn't know how to deal with it anymore.

As a result, she barreled out of the apartment as fast as she could. Ignoring the glances from Luke, Lorelai, and the other patrons in the diner, Jess bolted after her. He had been too harsh. "Stop running!" he yelled, sneakers pounding the pavement.

"Stop following!" she scoffed, picking up another burst of speed.

"Rory, come on!" he puffed, running faster. He couldn't seem to keep up with her, but she was predictable. Following her path to the bridge, he sped up and cut in front of her.

"Hey," she panted, slowing to a stop.

"Rory, I'm sorry. That was…" Jess toppled backwards from Rory's shove and careened into the water. Grabbing her arm, Jess sent Rory crashing into the water with him. After a moment, they broke the surface together. Jess shook out his hair like a wet dog and latched onto Rory's arm gently. Treading water was the only type of swimming Jess could do, and he struggled to stay above the surface. "You have to stop doubting me," Jess said slowly, inching over to the bridge. "It doesn't matter that I'm going away."

Rory nodded, trying to digest the words that had been spoken before. "I…" she started.

"Let me finish," Jess said calmly. "I'm not leaving you. I'm coming back for vacations and summer." He held her cheeks in his palm while attempting not to sink. "I'm sorry I was mean," he said, leaning over to kiss her forehead.

Smiling, Rory threw her arms around his neck. Jess reached for the bridge in order to steady himself. "I'm sorry," Rory whispered. "You're right. I'm used to getting what I want."

"We okay?" Jess asked, sliding his arm up on the bridge. "Seems like we're apologizing a lot."

"Can we maybe forget about the other night?" Rory asked meekly. "And stop throwing the Tristan thing in my face?"

"I'll see what I can do." He smirked before heaving himself out of the water and extending his hand to Rory.

* * *

"We haven't even looked through your yearbook yet," Lorelai announced as she walked into the kitchen. "Want to?" she asked, grabbing a coffee mug from the cabinet.

"Busy," Rory said quickly, brushing her mother off.

Nodding, Lorelai brought her coffee over to the table and peeked over Rory's shoulders. "Numbers and letters."

"Calculus."

"Exactly what I meant." Lorelai nodded and cracked open Rory's yearbook. "Oh, look. You made Jess sign."

Rory looked up briefly. "He wanted to."

"Oh." Lorelai scanned the quaint declaration written in tiny print on the first page. "That's nice." She flipped through a few pages, stopping at the "G" section of classmates. Rory's smile beamed up at her from the senior photo. After a moment, she flipped over to the "M" section. The expression on Jess's face was the typical cross between a smirk and a scowl. He stuck out like a sore thumb on the page with his tousled hair and the top two buttons undone on his school shirt. Lorelai shook her head at the droopy tie hanging to one side from his collar. "You really know how to pick 'em, kid."

"Hmm?" Rory asked as she punched numbers into her calculator.

"Jess. Did you see his senior picture?"

Rory smiled and peered up at her mother. "Classic Jess: smirk, messy hair, crooked tie."

"Hey! Class couple, that's cute." A tiny photograph of Rory and Jess by the staircase was pictured under the words. They stood rigid, Rory looking pristine, Jess looking like he had just rolled out of bed.

"Are you going to sit here all night while I study?" Rory asked. "I haven't looked at the book yet."

Lorelai read a couple of signatures at the end of the book where the classmates, with the obvious exception of Jess, were to sign. "Hey, you know what's weird? A lot of the kids in here are calling you a valedictorian. Is that anything like a dirty skank, 'cause if it is I'll kick their plaid butts up and down the sidewalk."

Biting her lip, Rory looked up from her calculus book again.

"Were you named valedictorian?" Lorelai asked.

"Yes, and you know what that means? One more stupid speech that I have to write, that I have no time to write, but nevertheless, I have to write." Rory flipped a page in her notebook and continued to bite her lip.

"Well, we have to go out and celebrate!" Lorelai cheered, shutting the yearbook.

"Yeah. Not now. I have to study. Besides, we can bring Jess and Luke and have a joint celebration."

Lorelai cocked her head to the side. "Joint celebration?"

* * *

"What are you doing?" Luke asked as the balled-up notebook paper hit the trashcan.

"Writing a speech," Jess mumbled, scribbling on the clean page.

"What speech?" Luke asked.

Jess blew a piece of hair away from his face. "Speech for graduation," he said, looking down at his eighth opening line. "Salutatorian," he continued calmly, grasping the pen in his hand.

"Salutatorian? Isn't that…?"

"Second in the class," Jess interrupted, not interested in Luke's praise at the moment.

"Jess, that's…"

"Annoying. I hate public speaking." Jess crumbled another sheet of paper and tossed it at the trashcan.

"I still think that's great," Luke praised.

"Yeah. Well, you don't have to get up in front of the whole school and recite a stupid speech," Jess grumbled, raking his hand through his hair.

"It's not just about the speech."

"It's all about the speech." Jess clicked his pen repeatedly. "I _suck_ at this," he vented, slamming the pen down on his notebook.

"Relax," Luke scolded. "I'll get you some pie."

The corner of his mouth turned up as Luke clomped downstairs to the diner. Connecting the dots mentally in his head, the pen met paper.

_Headmaster Charleston, faculty members, fellow students, family and friends…_


	24. Graduation

Thanks for the reviews on chapter twenty-three: Jeremy Shane, gilmorefanforever, kathi-ryn, lillitgirlx2, xliteratiwhorex, gilmoregirlsalwaysforever, I-luv-jess-mariano, LorLukealways, Curley-Q, Polly, krymsunkiss52, GrlWithoutAName, DiehardJavaJunkie14, Meredith-Grey, mizskitles220, Absoloutly-Alexandra, Literati44, radiogirl, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, CherryWolf713, and dtng4ever.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. The dialogue and concepts taken from **Those Are Strings, Pinocchio **belong to respective owners. I am merely borrowing them. I also don't own the quotes from Winston Churchill or Benjamin Franklin.

* * *

Jess was nervous. The speech he had written seemed corny and ridiculous the more he recited it in his head. Why had he allowed himself to write something so full of praise and inspiration? The words were going to sound weird coming out of his mouth. He knew they would – he was absolutely certain of that fact. The last several times he had recited the speech to the bathroom mirror proved that it was awkward. When had he become such a perfectionist? When at he-

"Let me present to you our salutatorian. This reserved young man struggled to overcome the pressures of high school, but has since settled into the rigorous atmosphere with diligence and poise. Please welcome Jess Mariano."

Jess stepped up to the podium and lowered the microphone to his height. He could already fell his legs shake. After all, he wasn't much of a public speaker. "Uh," he started, his voice hitching in his throat.

"Oh, Jess." Lorelai cringed. She knew the young man's low tolerance for speaking in front of a crowd.

"He's going to be fine," Luke assured her, watching his nephew twitch nervously at the podium.

Jess composed himself and glanced down at his speech. "Headmaster Charleston, faculty members, fellow students, family, and friends, welcome," he stuttered through the greeting, his voice clearing as he continued. "Our lives here are based on courage - the courage to learn, to strive, and to leave. Together, we have all faced challenges that have made us stronger people." He cleared his throat briefly. "I dislike talking; I prefer the allure of the written word to that of the spoken. Along the way, I have been coerced into speaking my mind." He paused. "This is where any typical overachiever would thank their parents for giving them countless opportunities and the push in the right direction."

"Luke," Lorelai said, jabbing him with her elbow.

"Shhh," he shot back.

"I don't, by definition, have parents, but I do have something more. Luke is my uncle slash hero wrapped up in a plaid package. He is more than just a caregiver or guardian; he is stable and dependable. I wouldn't be standing here if he didn't take me in when I needed him. Luke Danes is solid and admirable, and because of him, I have a direction, but because of Rory Gilmore, I have prerogative. I would give my right arm for Luke, and my left for Rory, who taught me how to see the world in color and convinced me there was nothing I couldn't do." He met Rory's eyes from where she sat with the rest of the class. Their eyes locked for a moment before he glanced back at his speech.

"That's so sweet." Lorelai reached over and pinched Luke's cheek.

"Stop it," he hissed, batting her hand away.

Jess sighed. "Congratulations, class of 2003, may you continue on and succeed in future endeavors, but have the courage to stand if you happen to fall. As Winston Churchill put it so eloquently, success is not final, failure is not fatal. It is courage to continue that counts." He nodded and adjusted the paper in front of him. "Thank you," he said shakily into the microphone. A blush spread across his cheeks as he stepped down from the podium. The applause continued even after Jess had walked off the stage.

Luke jammed his fist into his eye to keep from crying his nephew's method of thanks was more than he could even imagine.

"That was amazing," Lorelai whispered to Luke.

He nodded in agreement. One word and he would possibly start crying more than he already was at that point.

"It's a distinct pleasure for me to introduce to you our valedictorian. This young lady originated from a modest school where she distinguished herself immeasurably. She is humble, hard working, competitive when need be, and unparalleled in her academic achievements. Ladies and Gentlemen, Rory Gilmore."

Rory walked up to the podium and adjusted the microphone. Immediately, she locked eyes with her mother, and then flashed a smile at Jess, who was starting to sink in his seat. "Headmaster Charleston, faculty members, fellow students, family and friends, welcome. We never thought this day would come. We prayed for its quick delivery, crossed days off our calendars, counted hours, minutes, and seconds, and now that it's here, I'm sorry it is because it means leaving friends who inspire me and teachers who have been my mentors - so many people who have shaped my life and my fellow students' lives impermeably and forever. I live in two worlds. One is a world of books. I've been a resident of Faulkner's Yoknapatawpha County, hunted the white whale aboard the Pequod, fought alongside Napoleon, sailed a raft with Huck and Jim, committed absurdities with Ignatius J. Reilly, rode a sad train with Anna Karenina, and strolled down Swann's Way. It's a rewarding world, but my second one is by far superior. My second one is populated with characters slightly less eccentric but supremely real, made of flesh and bone, full of love, who are my ultimate inspiration for everything. Richard and Emily Gilmore are kind, decent, unfailingly generous people. They are my twin pillars without whom I could not stand. I am proud to be their grandchild. But my ultimate inspiration comes from my best friend, the dazzling woman from whom I received my name and my life's blood, Lorelai Gilmore."

Luke leaned over and jabbed Lorelai with his elbow. "It's your turn," he teased. "Hang in there."

"My mother never gave me any idea that I couldn't do whatever I wanted to do or be whomever I wanted to be. She filled our house with love and fun and books and music, unflagging in her efforts to give me role models from Jane Austen to Eudora Welty to Patti Smith. As she guided me through these incredible eighteen years, I don't know if she ever realized that the person I most wanted to be was her."

"I'm not crying," Lorelai claimed as Luke noticed the tears gleaming in her eyes.

"Thank you, Mom. You are my guidepost for everything." Rory paused and visually sought out Jess once more. "Absence sharpens love, presence strengthens it. I am sorry to be leaving home, but I am also grateful for new experiences. For the past ten years of my life, I have had a slightly unstable, but rewarding, friendship with Jess Mariano. Although we'll be on apart on opposite ends of the country, I know he will continue to inspire me as he always has." Jess sunk lower in his seat and she could tell a subtle blush had spread across his cheeks. "As we prepare ourselves today to leave. . ."

* * *

"Lorelai Leigh Gilmore."

"Lorelai, please," Emily scolded her as she stuck her tongue out at Rory.

Rory accepted her diploma and walked across the stage, pausing to stick her own tongue out at her mother. She flipped the tassel on her hat to the opposite side and met eyes with her mother once more, this time with a smile on her lips.

* * *

"Jess Mariano."

He was stoic as he accepted his diploma. As he walked across the stage, he spotted Luke in the crowd. His uncle waved from his place next to Lorelai and Jess acknowledged him with a nod before turning his tassel.

"I can't believe they're high school graduates," Luke whispered as he leaned over to Lorelai.

"They're growing up so fast," she said distantly as the next graduate in line stepped up for their diploma.

* * *

"Come here!" Jess said, grabbing Rory's hand.

"Where are we going?" she asked, trying to keep up as her high-heeled shoes slapped against the marble floor.

They skidded to a stop at the base of the giant staircase. "I've always wanted to do this." Jess smirked.

"Do what?" Rory asked.

"Slide down the banister."

He was carefree and smiling. Rory hadn't seen him like that in ages. Finally, the stress of school had been removed. "You're going to hurt yourself," she warned.

"No, I won't," he argued, tossing Rory his graduation cap. He climbed the stairs, taking two at a time.

"Jess…" Rory hesitated as she stood at the bottom of the staircase, fingering the tassel on his cap.

He swung his leg over the banister and slid down as Rory diverted her eyes. Just as she suspected, he lost his balance at the end and smacked against the two hundred year old marble. "I'm okay," the muffled voice from inside the graduation gown claimed.

Rory extended her hand to Jess and he picked himself off the floor. "Are you done being stupid?" she asked. "No more sliding down really long banisters?"

Jess smirked again, the impish expression causing him to appear like an exuberant child. "Just one more thing," he claimed, grabbing Rory's hand.

"Now what?" she asked.

Jess pulled his swiss army knife out his pocket and showed it to Rory. Gently, he popped the knife section up and crouched against the baseboard. "We're leaving our mark."

"You're going to defile Chilton property?" Rory asked.

"Hey, people need to know we were here," Jess said, holding up his hands.

"We're in the yearbook. Isn't that proof enough?" she asked, glancing around the giant hall. "Oh, shh. Someone's coming."

They leaned against the wall quietly as the person passed them without a second look. "Close call," he whispered, leaning down on one knee and popping open his swiss army knife again. "We'll do it quick," he claimed, carving a tiny letter J in the wood.

"Okay…" Rory said uneasily. Grasping both graduation caps, she leaned in closer to inspect Jess's handiwork. His letters were tiny and precise, just as they were on paper.

"Want to carve your own initials?" he asked, turning around. The J and M sat against the wood smirking back at Rory.

"No," she said, shaking her head. There was no way she would be able to keep her hand from trembling.

"Doesn't this feel like the time when we carved our names into that old tree?" Jess asked as he carved the curve around the letter R. "We were ten, I think," Jess said.

"Taylor was pissed," Rory said, suppressing a giggle. "He burst right into the diner looking for you."

Rory tapped her heel against the marble as Jess finished up carving the letter G. "There. We're famous, Gilmore." Jess stood and pocketed the swiss army knife before brushing off his pants.

She leaned down and inspected the tiny row of letters. "They're going to trace it back to us," she said nervously.

"So what?" he smirked. "Live in the moment."

Rory shook her head. "Come on. My mom and Luke prepped that big celebration thing in the diner. They're probably looking for us."

"Okay," he agreed, reaching down for her hand.

"Let it be the only time I say this," she started, "but I kind of liked it here. I might miss it."

"Yeah," Jess said, glancing around the hall. "It didn't suck."

* * *

Another rock thwacked off Rory's windowpane, causing her to drag her sleepy body out of bed. Before making her way over to the window, she tapped on her lamp. Rubbing her eyes, she drew back the curtains and stared into the dark yard. "Hey," Jess said, drawing her in for a kiss.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, rubbing her eyes.

"Come on," he said, grabbing her hand. "Grab some shoes and let's go," he said hurriedly.

"Go? Go where?" Rory asked, still lingering by the window.

"Anywhere. We'll be impulsive," Jess claimed, yanking on her arm.

"Impulsive? At two in the morning?" she glared at her alarm clock and studied Jess.

"Yeah, come on," he begged. "Get your shoes."

"Jess, I'm tired. It's late," she said again.

"We're not going to have any time to be impulsive," he said. "Get your shoes," he begged again.

Rory blinked and dropped his hand. "You want to run away, don't you?" Jess took a step back from the window.

"No. Just a couple hours. I want to get away," he promised.

Rory shook her head. "Get inside," she said, helping to pull him through the window. She grabbed a deck of cards from her shelf and started to shuffle them. "We'll play Uno," she said.

He smirked. Jess may have put up a front that he was tough, but Uno topped Poker on the game scale. "Okay," he agreed, kicking off his sneakers. They sat on the floor next to the bed and Rory dealt out the cards.

Jess sighed. Suddenly California wasn't looking so great after all.


	25. Sex, Love, and Lies

There's a warning in effect for mild sexual exposure and conversation. Nothing major. Check the author's note at the end of the chapter for additional details.

Thanks for the reviews on chapter twenty-four: DiehardJavaJunkie14, gilmorefanforever, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, krymsunkiss52, I-luv-jess-mariano, LorLukealways, Curley-Q, Jeremy Shane, ShaolinQueen, Literati44, CherryWolf713, Meredith-Grey, Absoloutly-Alexandra, IndusLotus2001, mizskitles220, dtng4ever, Polly, and xliteratiwhorex.

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

* * *

The plastic fan thwacked in its metal cage as Jess flipped a page in his book. It was close to ninety degrees outside, but it was nearly five degrees warmer in the diner. Luke had ditched his flannel and borrowed one of his nephew's oversized shirts with the sleeves ripped off.

Upstairs in the apartment, it was slightly cooler thanks to the old fan that was flipped on high. Jess had positioned it so that the air was blowing right at him. It was definitely more comfortable to lie shirtless on his bed reading in the air than to venture outside. Stars Hollow had been caught in the middle of a massive heat wave for the past week, and it was starting to get brutal.

Jess sighed and tossed his book on the night table. He was too heated to function, even with the fan cooling him off. What he really wanted was ice cream. The frosty air from the freezer blew at his face as he shifted the containers. Fingering Rory's tiny pint of Chunky Monkey, he closed the freezer and grabbed his book off the nightstand. Suddenly, he wasn't in the mood for ice cream anymore.

Jess fanned the pages in front of his face, blowing his hair in different directions. Sitting upright, Jess looked up at the door as Luke knocked around outside. Luke pushed the door open and dropped a large box at the foot of his bed.

"Happy Graduation," he grunted, wiping the sweat off his forehead.

Jess set his book down and peered up at his uncle. "What's that?"

"It's a box," Luke answered sarcastically.

"Awesome. I've always wanted one of those," Jess ribbed.

"Just open it, will yah?" Luke grumbled, adjusting his hat.

Jess pulled his swiss army knife out of the drawer and started slicing through the tape.

"You're opening it slow," Luke complained.

"The tape is thick," Jess shot back, pulling his knife through the last section of the sticky plastic. Luke stood by the end of the bed with his arms crossed over his chest. Jess pulled back on the flaps of the box and was met with Styrofoam packaging wedged between the cardboard. "Jeez. Can you help me?" he asked.

"Yeah." Luke pulled on the bottom of the box while Jess held on to the Styrofoam packaging.

"Oof. There." Jess stared at the pile of Styrofoam sitting in his lap before peeling the cover off. "Luke." He shut the makeshift Styrofoam box and looked up at his uncle.

"You need a computer for school," Luke explained.

"I know. I was planning on buying one as soon as Stanford sent me the letter about technology requirements. You didn't need to-"

Luke interrupted Jess by covering his mouth with his hand. "I wanted to. I opened your Stanford letter and had the computer built to their specifications."

His raised eyebrows dropped. "The paint job and upholstery for the car was supposed to be my graduation present," Jess protested.

"Okay, so this was your salutatorian present. Better?" Luke asked.

Jess smirked. "Okay. I'll take it."

"You better," Luke said. "I just want you to be prepared. I can't do much for you when you're at school across the country."

Jess nodded. "Thanks," he said, smiling. He sat up on his knees and gave his uncle a brief hug.

"I need to get back to that giant inferno downstairs. You cool enough with that?" he asked, jerking his thumb at the noisy fan.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I think I'll wait for you to set this up." Jess pulled back the Styrofoam and fingered smooth cover on his laptop.

"It's okay. I don't know anything about computers," Luke said with a shrug. "Go ahead and start it up."

Jess nodded and pulled the laptop out of the Styrofoam casing. Flipping the cover open, he pressed the metal start button and the laptop blared to life.

"Have fun with it," Luke instructed. "Just keep it nice for school, okay? I'm not buying a new one any time soon."

"Gotcha." Jess ran his fingers over the metal keys and shot a lopsided smile at his uncle.

"If you need anything, come downstairs. Just put a shirt on when you do." Luke stood in front of the fan for a moment before trudging back downstairs to the diner.

He was greeted with Lorelai and Rory at the counter fanning themselves with homemade paper fans. "Why is it so hot in here?" Lorelai asked, eyeing his shirt. "You're wearing a sleeveless shirt."

"Jess gave it to me. It's hot," Luke grumbled.

"Is Jess upstairs?" Rory asked, hopping off the stool and deserting her fan.

Luke nodded. "He's up there playing with his new laptop."

"It finally came?" Rory asked excitedly. "I'm going upstairs."

Jess was setting up his program files when Rory opened the apartment door. "Hey," he greeted her, looking away from the computer screen.

"That's nice," Rory commented, sitting at the edge of his bed.

"And it can wait," Jess said with a smirk as his eyes skimmed down the length of her body. She was dressed for the weather in a tiny pair of cloth shorts and a little tank top that met the waistband of her shorts. He shut off the computer, closed the cover, and placed it on the night table.

She scooted closer to him on the bedspread and he closed the gap between them by yanking her on his lap. "Are you trying to seduce me?" she asked cheekily, placing her hands at his bare waist.

"Are you?" he asked breathily, his words catching in a gasp as she ran her hands lower. Jess snapped the waistband of her tiny shorts and danced his fingers across the front of the fabric. Playfully, he untied the little satin bow that secured the waistband tightly against her hips. With a smirk, he inched up from the waistband and slid his hand across her stomach.

"Jess," she hissed, repositioning herself in his lap.

Jess slid his hand from her lower thighs up to her hips. Steadying her dainty body against his, he lowered himself on the bed with Rory on his lap. Rory dipped against his chest and he raised his hips to meet hers.

* * *

Rory giggled as Jess buried his face against her neck. He was wearing a dopey smile and his hair was standing up in different directions. They had opted to replace their clothing in case Luke decided to finally check on them, but the post-coital glow remained.

Jess pulled on her lip with his teeth and held her in an embrace. His eyes held the same dopey expression and Rory cuddled closer to his bare chest. "What's with the look?" she asked, smoothing down one of his cowlicks.

His dark hair bounced back as he trailed kisses down her collarbone. "I'm happy," he said, pulling his lips away.

Rory held her cheek in her hand and propped her arm up with her elbow. His eyes held a glow she had never seen before. She was captivated. "Me too," she sighed contentedly.

Jess tucked Rory closer and dropped his hands to her waist. "I love you," he whispered into her hair. "Sweetie," he added so softly, Rory could barely hear him.

* * *

"Hey, Kiddo. I got the food from Al's and all three Godfathers. What's the matter?" Lorelai asked suddenly, as Rory seemed disinterested in both the food and the movies.

"I had sex," she blurted out.

Lorelai dropped the Al's bag on the floor. "What?" she repeated, scrambling for the food.

"I had sex," Rory repeated. "I had sex with Jess."

Lorelai placed the bag of food with the movies on the table. "Thanks for clearing that up," she said, sitting next to her daughter on the couch. "Uh, when?"

"This afternoon."

"This…this afternoon? When we…were at Luke's? You had sex in Luke's apartment?"

"Would you rather we had it here?" Rory asked.

"Ew. You have a point. Did he…?"

"He used a condom," Rory cut in. "And I'm on the pill, remember?"

Lorelai nodded, suddenly uncomfortable talking about her daughter's sex life. "Did he pressure you into it?" she asked.

"No." Rory shook her head. "It was…time. I wanted to do it before he left."

"He's not leaving for a couple months."

Rory smirked. "I wanted to be good at it before it before he left," she clarified.

Lorelai smacked Rory's shoulder. "Dirty bird."

"Mom," she squeaked. "You told me to tell you."

"I know, Kid." Lorelai wrapped one arm behind Rory's neck. "Thanks for telling me."

"You're not going to make Jess miserable over this, are you?" she asked, hoping Jess wouldn't find out that her mother knew.

"Depends. Was he good?"

"_Mom!"_

* * *

"How's the chicken?"

"Fine."

Luke sighed. "You're quiet tonight."

"I'm fine."

Setting his fork down, he looked across the table at his nephew. "We need to book a flight to California."

"Why?" Jess asked, dropping his own fork.

"For _school._ It's a little far to commute."

"Oh. Yeah." Jess shrunk down in his seat.

Luke noticed Jess shying away from the table. "Okay. I'm serious. What the hell is wrong with you? Ever since Rory left this afternoon, you've barely said three words at a time."

He mumbled something that Luke couldn't understand and looked away.

"What?" Luke asked.

"Should have gone to Harvard," he whispered.

"Should have…why?" Luke asked.

"Don't want to leave." Jess shrugged.

"Well, we can pull the deposit?" Luke suggested. "Maybe Harvard will take the same computer?"

Jess shook his head. "I missed the deadline for that," he said softly.

"You checked."

He nodded. "Yale, too."

"Why now? You've been dead set on Stanford for months," Luke said.

"Not important."

"Yeah, it's important if you don't want to go to Stanford. I'm not paying for a school you don't want to go to," Luke snapped.

"No, don't start this," Jess protested. "I don't…want to do this right now!"

Luke grabbed his plate off the table and slammed it in the sink. Jess continued to pick at his dinner while Luke started scrubbing the pan. The issue had been dropped. "You _cannot_ base your decision on Rory!" he yelled, turning away from the sink.

Jess shrunk in his chair even more. "I'm…not."

"You are!" Luke accused.

"No."

"You never wanted to go to Harvard or Yale." Luke wiped the soapsuds off his hands. "You wanted Columbia or Stanford, never Harvard."

Jess scuffed the sole of his sneaker against the floor. "Stop yelling at me," he requested softly.

Luke slammed another plate in the sink. "I don't care what you do after next year." Slam. "But if you don't attend Stanford this year, I'm not paying."

"Fine," Jess snapped. "I don't care."

"Get your priorities straight," Luke demanded, poking his finger in Jess's direction. "You're too smart to give up your future for a girl."

"She's not just a girl," Jess mumbled. "And Harvard is a top school."

"A top school that had twice as many cons as pros on your list," Luke snapped.

"Jeez. I'm going to Stanford this year. Shut up." Jess tossed his plate in the sink and cringed as it shattered against the metal.

Luke gritted his teeth. "Go to your room."

"I don't have a fucking room," Jess snapped. "This whole place _is_ a room."

"Fine. Go to bed," Luke snapped, picking the broken pieces of the plate out of the drain.

The phone started ringing and Luke groaned, abandoning the broken shards in the sink. "Hello?" he grunted. "Who…who is this?" Sighing, Luke walked over to the bathroom, where he knew Jess was hiding out with a paperback. "Jess?" he called.

"What?" Jess snapped from his place against the door.

"Phone for you."

Jess whipped open the bathroom door, a book in one hand. "Who is it?" he grumbled.

"It's…your mom."

"_What_?"

* * *

If you'd like the full version of Jess and Rory's first time, I've posted it in a new story called **Ruby Over Diamonds. **This story will include deleted scenes that are listed under a mature rating. I can't guarantee frequent posting, only because there are not going to be many deleted scenes. I will, however, promise you at least ten chapters. This way, **Diamonds and Rust **will not be focused solely on sex. Eventually, other deleted scenes may follow.

Thanks for reading.


	26. Long Distance Parenting

This picks up right after the last chapter, which means Jess and Luke's spat is still hanging in the air.

Thanks for the reviews on chapter twenty-five: DiehardJavaJunkie14, Jeremy Shane, xliteratiwhorex, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, lillitgirlx2, mizskitles220, CherryWolf713, Meredith-Grey, Literati44, Curley-Q, gilmoregirlsalwaysforever, ShaolinQueen, radiogirl, and dtng4ever.

Disclaimer: I didn't magically retain the rights to Gilmore Girls overnight. Sorry.

* * *

"I know you're going to be spending most of the summer with Jess," Lorelai started, pausing to take a bite of the Chinese take out. "Especially with the two of you leaving in the fall and your new found hobby." Rory rolled her eyes in response. "But you're making time for momma, aren't you?"

Rory sighed. "Making time for momma doesn't account that I left Jess tonight to watch movies and take a gamble with food from Al's, only to offer to pay for Chinese take out?"

Lorelai grinned as she wiped the soy sauce off her upper lip. "Nope. I need more time. Besides, it's been too long since our last movie night."

"We had a movie night two nights ago, remember?" Rory's piece of Chinese chicken slid across her plate as she chased it with her fork.

"That doesn't count. Jess was here," Lorelai pointed out.

"And he brought double cheeseburgers, onion rings, and chili fries," Rory reminded her as she continued to chase the piece of chicken around her soupy plate.

"Ah. I knew I liked your boyfriend for a reason." Lorelai stabbed the chicken with her fork, earning an annoyed glare from her daughter as she popped it in her mouth.

"Hey!" she protested, snatching a piece of marinated steak of Lorelai's dish.

"Playing dirty, are we?" Lorelai reached over to steal another morsel off Rory's plate.

"Hey!" Rory squealed, pulling her plate away from Lorelai.

"I need to teach you how to survive in the wild!" she teased as she chewed the piece of stolen chicken.

"I don't think anyone in the wild is more possessive about food that you are," Rory laughed, digging through one of the paper Chinese food boxes.

"Well, then I think you're set for life, Kid." Lorelai reached for another paper box and dumped more food on her plate. "What's Jess doing tonight?"

"Why? Are you in the mood for chili fries now?" Rory teased.

"No. I just wanted to know what your boyfriend was doing without you tonight."

"Luke was going to make dinner and I think they were going to watch the baseball game," Rory said.

"Jess watching a baseball game?" Lorelai snorted. "In this lifetime? How much money did Luke have to pay him to get him to sit and watch a game?"

Rory laughed. "Jess doesn't mind the occasional baseball game, he just has no clue what's going on."

"As long as he's coherent in the morning." Lorelai curled her legs on the couch and hit the pause button. _The Godfather_ froze on the television as she faced Rory. "Boston's not really far away," she said.

Rory nodded. "Is this going to turn into on of those sappy moments?" she asked delicately.

"I just feel like we haven't really addressed your whole situation," Lorelai started. "This whole time, we've just been focused on Jess and how he's leaving for California and how that makes you feel. We haven't really had time to talk about us."

"Mom…" Rory pushed her plate onto the coffee table and grabbed a pillow to hug against her chest. "Boston isn't far. I can still come home maybe scattered weekends when there aren't any papers or exams. There's always Thanksgiving and Christmas and other vacations," she started to ramble.

"Hey, kiddo, take a breath," Lorelai interrupted her. "I know how get to Harvard, so that means we'll be having slumber parties when I don't have to work." Lorelai smiled.

"We have settled it, then." Rory said with a grin. "I'll see so much of you, it will be like I never left." She grabbed her container of chicken and passed it to her mother. "You want some?"

Lorelai looked down at her half empty plate. "Nah. It's only fun when I can take it from you unwillingly. "

* * *

Jess whipped open the bathroom door, a book in one hand. "Who is it?" he grumbled.

"It's…your mom."

"_What_?" The skinny paperback fell from his hands. He had waited for his mother for ten years, and she was calling _now_?

Luke shoved the phone at him. "Here."

He stared at the white plastic before pressing it against his ear. "Hello?"

"Hi, baby!" she cooed. He could barely remember what her voice sounded like, but he assumed the saccharin tone had always been present.

"Hi…mom." He shut the door lightly, trapping himself in the tiny bathroom so that Luke couldn't hear the conversation.

"You know what I was thinking, Jessie?" she asked. Jess leaned against the wall. "I was thinking you should come home."

He lurched forward and plopped on the bathroom floor. "What?" he gasped, as his back hit the wall.

"Yeah. You're gonna be sixteen in a couple months, aren't yah?"

A soft batch of tears stung at his eyes as he tried to will them away. Sixteen? He was…he was eighteen. He was going to be nineteen in a couple of months. It had been a long time since he had seen her, but his own mother didn't know how old he was? Jess sighed. This was the kind of thing he should be used to. The kind of thing he expected. It was exactly what Luke had warned him. "No," he spat, the venom and anger shooting out with the little word.

"No?" she asked.

"I'm _eighteen_," he snapped. "I'm going to _college_ in the fall."

"Oh, shit," she whispered, barely loud enough for him to hear.

The sadness sitting in the pit of his stomach turned to raw anger. He didn't want to pour his heart out, he was just plain mad. "You never wanted me anyway," he snapped.

"Oh, baby. That's not…" she tried to protest before he cut her off.

"_Bullshit," _Jess snapped. "I waited for you to take me home when I was eight and you never came."

"It was complicated, sweetie. I didn't have enough money to support a kid and I knew your Uncle Luke would take good care of you. He's taking good care of you, isn't he?"

"He's great," Jess said. "I'm glad you never came to get me."

"Oh, honey…"

"As far as I'm concerned, I don't have a mother," Jess continued. "So you're not obligated to do anything for me. "

"I just wanted to talk to you…"

"It took you ten years to want to talk to me," Jess said, leaning against the wall and tilting his head back. "And you don't even know how old I am."

"That was just a mistake, baby," she pleaded.

"When's my birthday?" Jess demanded.

He could hear her hesitating from the other line. "It's in the fall…"

"It's in September." He nodded and pulled on the hangnail dangling off his thumb.

"It's on the eighteenth," she said proudly.

"The ninth, actually. Close though," he said blankly.

"Hey, kiddo. I think I should go," she said.

"Yeah. I think maybe you should." Jess shut the phone off when he heard the click on the other line. He stared at the phone and wanted to throw it at the wall so hard that it would shatter. Instead, he gripped the white plastic in his fist.

Luke had already set him off that night. Coupled with the phone call from his mother, Jess was angrier than he had been in a long time. He slammed the door open and slapped the receiver back in the charger.

"I take it that went well," Luke mumbled as he looked up at Jess.

"Peachy," he snapped.

"It's just how your mother is…" Luke tried to explain.

Jess had settled on his bed with the book he had been reading prior to the phone call. He diligently tried to ignore Luke, although he knew he was going to continue attempting to console him.

The words on his page blended together in a swirl. He was aggravated, and now he couldn't even concentrate long enough to read. What he really wanted was a cigarette and maybe Rory…

"Jess, if you want to talk about it…"

"God! I don't want to fucking talk about it!" Jess yelled, throwing his book against the wall. He stood up and shoved his feet back in his sneakers. "I'm sick of talking about everything," he vented, ripping open his dresser drawer. He snatched up a tattered pack of cigarettes and grabbed his leather jacket off the hook. "It's always talk about school, talk about Rory, talk about this, talk about that. Just _leave me alone._"

"I didn't say you had to talk about it," Luke corrected. "I just said that if you wanted to…"

"Well, I _don't_ want to," Jess snapped, rifling through another drawer to find his emergency supply of Bic lighters. After locating the package, he tore through the cardboard and pulled out a green lighter. Slamming the drawer, he turned back to Luke. "I'll be back," he grunted, peeling back the plastic wrapper on his pack of cigarettes.

"Jess! Where are you going?" Luke demanded, pulling on the sleeve of his leather jacket.

"I'm going _out_. I'm getting out of here." He yanked the sleeve back from Luke's hand and shrugged on the jacket.

"Where are you going?" he demanded, blocking the doorway.

"I'm going to Rory's, okay?" he snapped. "I'll be back in the morning."

"You can't-"

"Just let me go. I'll be back in the morning and then we can talk," he said through gritted teeth.

Luke sighed. They both needed to cool down, and he wasn't sure how much longer he could deal with Jess. It had completely escaped him that he had sent Jess to bed for the night already. "Fine," Luke said, throwing his hands in the air. "Go to Rory's, but only if Lorelai will let you stay." He watched Jess slam the door and he sunk down against the wall to hold his head in his hands.

He was sick of Jess acting detached. The idea of California had never been pleasant, but it seemed to be affecting them too much lately. Luke was trying to let it roll off his shoulders, but it wasn't rolling quite as swiftly anymore.

Sighing, Luke flipped on the start of the Red Sox game and tried to get his mind off Jess leaving for school in August. He wasn't looking forward to it, but he thought it was starting to move to the front burner in Jess's mind.

Instead, he attempted to think of a breakfast menu for Jess in the morning. If they were going to talk, Jess would take to the topic better if he were eating. He was a teenage boy, after all. Most of his time was taken up by food.

Jess liked blueberry pancakes with chocolate chips. Luke hardly made them for him because he didn't approve of chocolate for breakfast, but he would do anything for a friendly conversation.

He tilted his head back as Johnny Damon crushed a homerun over the Green Monster. If the game wasn't even fazing him, it was definitely time to shut down and jump on the train of thought the next morning.

* * *

The phone rang at eleven the next morning, startling Rory out of a deep slumber. Aware that her mother had already left for the Inn that morning, she felt around for the phone near her bed. "Hello?" Rory answered sleepily.

"Rory, it's Luke."

"Morning, Luke," she mumbled, turning on her side in the hopes of finding a comfortable position.

"Can you send Jess home?" he asked.

"Send Jess home?" Rory sat up in bed and pulled her ponytail holder out of her messy hair.

"Yeah. Tell him to come home or give the phone to him so that I can tell him directly."

Rory sat up straighter and scrunched her hair. "What are you talking about?" she asked. "Jess isn't here."

"Did he leave already?" Luke asked.

"You really need to let me in on the joke," Rory said with a yawn, "because I haven't see Jess since I was there yesterday afternoon."


	27. Search Parties and Compassion

I updated as quickly as I could, so I hope this was fast enough for your liking. This is also the fourth update in my rotation in about five days, so consider yourselves lucky.

Thanks for the reviews on chapter twenty-six: DiehardJavaJunkie14, CherryWolf713, ShaolinQueen, gilmorefanforever, Jeremy Shane, lillitgirlx2, dtng4ever, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, kathi-ryn, radiogirl, kylielink, Literati44, Polly, LorLukealways, Curley-Q, mizskitles220, Meredith-Grey, xliteratiwhorex, rocknflorida4lif, and I-luv-jess-mariano

Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Gilmore Girls.

* * *

"You really need to let me in on the joke," Rory said with a yawn, "because I haven't see Jess since I was there yesterday afternoon."

Luke nearly dropped the phone. When he composed himself, he brought it back to his ear. "What?"

"Jess didn't show up last night," Rory said. "He didn't mention he was coming over."

"Shit," Luke said under his breath.

"What? What's the matter?" By now Rory was fully awake and was starting to pace around the kitchen.

"Jess…ran off somewhere," Luke said. "He said he was going over there and that he'd be back in the morning."

Rory plunked down in a kitchen chair. "What about the bridge?" she asked.

"I haven't looked anywhere," Luke said. "I just found out he was missing."

"Give me ten minutes," Rory promised. "I'll help you search for him. I bet he just fell asleep reading somewhere. He does that all the time."

"Okay," Luke said. "I'll have coffee ready for you when you get here."

* * *

"You've looked everywhere?" Lorelai asked, trying to calm down an extremely frantic Luke.

"Everywhere!" he exclaimed. "I went around to every shop in town, including the unicorn stores! I sent Rory off to search his hiding places like the bridge and the bookstores in Hartford." He sighed. "He took his car. I'm running out of ideas."

"Did you call the police?" Lorelai asked.

"It hasn't been twenty-four hours. And," Luke sighed and sat down, "he's a legal adult."

"Right." Lorelai sat down next to Luke. "He'll turn up."

Rory jangled the bell above the door and let it slam behind her as she entered. She dropped Lorelai's car keys on the table and threw herself in a chair. "He's nowhere, Luke," she grumbled, cradling her head in her hands. "What happened?"

"We had an argument," Luke said. "And then his mom called."

Rory sat up so fast that she toppled out of the chair. "What? His _mom_ called?" She leaned over the chair and sat back on the piece of furniture.

"Yeah. Then he yelled at me, grabbed a pack of cigarettes, and said he was staying at your house overnight to cool off." Luke took his hat off and ran his fingers through his hair. "I shouldn't have let him go. This is all my fault."

Lorelai shook her head. "If he wanted to go, he would have snuck out when you fell asleep. This isn't your fault, Luke."

"Okay," Luke said, replacing his hat on his head. "I'm mad at him for taking off, but I just want him to come home."

"I know," Lorelai sat, patting his shoulder comfortingly.

"I want to know he's safe," Luke continued. "Now I wish I bought the kid a cell phone. He's getting one before goes off to college," he ranted. "I hate cell phones. I raised that kid to hate cell phones. Why the hell didn't I buy him a damn cell phone?"

"Luke, calm down." Lorelai rested her hand on his shoulder again. "Do you want tea? I bet I can make you tea."

Luke held his face in his palms. "No. It's okay," he said.

Rory's phone began to vibrate in her pocket. Standing up, she flipped up her cell phone and slipped behind the curtain. She hadn't recognized the number on the caller ID, and she crossed her fingers that it was Jess on the other line. "Hello?" She didn't receive an answer. "Hello? Jess? Jess, is that you?" She waited for an answer. "We're worried sick about you," she continued.

"I'm sorry."

"Jess! Where are you?" she ducked around the corner for privacy. Luke would be all over his nephew if he knew Jess was on the other line. On one hand, it probably would have been a smart idea to hand the phone to Luke, but on the other hand, Rory hoped Jess would react better to her. After all, he could have called the diner's line if he was planning on talking to his uncle.

"I didn't really mean to take off," he explained. "I was planning on going to your house. There's a bunch of candy from Doose's in my backseat and I rented Almost Famous and Casablanca and Willy Wonka. I was going to smoke my cigarettes on the way to your house and then I was going to stay all night and then come home to Luke and-"

"Jess! Where are you?" she asked, cutting into his rant.

"-then we were going to talk about what happened the night before with my mom and the phone call. I was going to apologize and explain everything and now he's pissed because I skipped town and lied and didn't tell anyone where I was going and-"

"God, Jess! Slow down," Rory scolded. "Where are you?" she asked again.

"-that's stupid because I should have known what I was doing. I should have just taken the junk food and movies to your house instead of coming back and throwing everything into my backseat and taking off."

"Jess, I don't care about that. I mean, I care about it, but seriously, where are you?" She sat on Luke's sofa and waited for him to answer. "Did you go see your mom?"

"No," he answered quickly. "I don't know where my mom lives. And even if I did know where she lives, I doubt she would really want me there. No, I didn't even take off because of my mom. At least, I don't think I took off because of my mom. I'm not really sure. I haven't actually talked to her in ten years, so I don't know if this is how I react or what."

Rory had never heard Jess talk so much in her entire life. She was barely sure of how to respond to him. "Jess, please. Where are you calling from…?"

"I found a payphone. And now you're probably mad at me too because we had sex and I'm not even there, and-"

"JESS!" she yelled, interrupting him again. "God! Jess Mariano, _where the hell are you?!"_

He sighed. "Pennsylvania."

"Pennsylvania?" she gasped. "Why are you in Pennsylvania?"

"I was just driving and I ended up in New York-"

"I thought you didn't go to see your mom!" she cried out.

"I _didn't_," he snapped. "I don't know why I decided to go to New York. I just got in my car in drove in one direction and I thought since I was born in New York that maybe I'd be accustomed to it, but God, Rory, I have no freaking clue." He paused. "And then, I don't know. I just got out of there as quick as I could and I ended up in Pennsylvania."

She could hear his voice cracking in the background and wasn't sure if he was started to wear down or if the call was breaking up. "Jess, are you okay?" she asked. She waited a moment for his answer. "Jess? Jess, are you still there?"

"Shit."

"Jess?"

"I don't have any more fucking quarters," he mumbled, slamming his palm against the base of the payphone. "I don't have any money," he said softly. "And I need gas." He sunk down and sat on the ground. "I don't know what I was thinking," he said. "Rory, I need help. I need-"

The dial tone blared in her ear. Shit. Quickly, she shut the phone and raced to the call list and hit send. After waiting a second, she came to realize the payphone didn't accept incoming calls. Panicking, Rory flew down the stairs. "Luke!" she cried, thrusting the phone at him.

"Rory? Was that Jess? Where is he?" Luke demanded, sitting up straight.

"He's in Pennsylvania!" she choked, slamming her cell phone on the table.

"What?" Luke stood up so fast that the chair he had been sitting in crashed to the ground. "Why the hell is he in Pennsylvania?"

"I don't know! He said…he said he went to New York and felt out of place so he just kept driving and…"

"Call him back!" Luke yelled, grabbing the phone from the table.

"He called from a payphone," Rory explained.

"And?"

"He ran out of quarters." She looked at her shoes.

"Fuck!" Luke smacked his hand on the counter top and swiveled around to face both Gilmores, the image of his nephew's wallet sitting on the dresser stuck in his mind.

Rory jumped from the sound of Luke's voice. "What?" she squeaked timidly.

"He wasn't planning to run."

"No, he wasn't. He-"

"He left his goddamn wallet on his dresser." Luke leaned against the counter. "Which means he doesn't have any identification or the emergency credit card I gave him."

Rory chewed her lip as Luke paced around the diner. "Luke…"

"What?" he snapped, turning on his heel to face her.

"Sorry. I…never mind." She shook her head.

They were silent for a moment as Rory's cell phone started to vibrate on the table again. Before she could move, Luke lunged for the little object and flipped up the cover. "Jess?"

"Oh. Luke…"

"Goddammit Jess. You know better than to-"

"Don't yell at me!" he protested. "I called Rory because I knew you would yell at me."

"I don't want to turn this into a fight," Luke said softly. "I want you back in Stars Hollow, preferably in one piece."

"I found five dollars and some change in my glove compartment," he said. "But I don't have enough for a full tank of gas and I left my wallet on my dresser."

Luke nodded and leaned against the counter. "I need to know exactly where you are," he said slowly. "I'm going to come and get you, we'll fill your gas tank, and then we'll drive back to Connecticut."

Jess squirmed. "Okay," he said softly.

Luke pulled a sheet off his order pad. "I need to know the name of the street you're on and I'll have Rory pinpoint your location. Give me the address, and we can do more with that."

Jess peered around from where he was standing at the row of payphones. "Okay. I'm on…"

* * *

Luke shifted the gears in his truck when he spotted Jess's black car pulled into the lot where he said he had parked. Sighing, he took the keys out of ignition and walked over to where Jess was in his car. The locks were secured while Jess remained curled up asleep in the front seat. After driving for most of last night and stopping in New York, he was absolutely beat.

Luke tapped on the window, hoping to wake him up gently. Jess stretched and reached for the door handle. As he opened the door, the lights over the dashboard flicked on to illuminate the dark car. Luke's first reaction was to yell so loudly at the teenager that people three miles away could hear him. Instead, he bent down at eye level and hugged him tightly. He could feel Jess clinging to him before he broke the hug. Luke crouched down in front of the driver's seat and held onto his nephew's ankles. "Are you okay now?" he asked as Jess wiped his eyes. He had never seen Jess so deathly frightened in his entire life.

Jess nodded fearfully. "I'm okay," he said softly.

"Are you hungry?" he asked.

Jess nodded again. "I ate some of the candy I bought for Rory." He straightened his back. "I'm starving."

Luke flipped his watch and stared at the time. "It's late," he said. "Why don't we find somewhere to get dinner and then find a hotel and crash for the night?"

"You sure?" Jess asked.

"I just drove four hours and got lost more times than I can count." He shook his head. "I'm exhausted. And I don't think either of us can handle a trip back to Connecticut. Not to mention that most of the roads I had to take to get here were dark and unlit."

"Luke," Jess started meekly, "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to-"

He rested his hand on his nephew's shoulder. "Save it," Luke requested. "You can explain later. We're both tired and hungry, and I'm just glad you're okay."


	28. Surrender or Nothing

Phew! Sorry this update didn't come as quickly as the last. Even though I had a plan in mind for this chapter, it wasn't easy. There's a lot of the typical Diamonds and Rust Jess and Luke bonding. I'm sure you'll recognize the type once it happens. Also, Jess flashes his vulnerable side a couple of times. We all know it's there, and Diamonds and Rust Jess is a little quicker to open up that the Jess on the series. Anyway, enjoy the longest chapter so far. : )

Thanks for the reviews on chapter twenty-seven: gilmorefanforever, gilmoregirlsalwaysforever, Polly, ShaolinQueen, dtng4ever, Meredith-Grey, Curley-Q, Jeremy Shane, LVRofTristan, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, lillitgirlx2, kathi-ryn, DiehardJavaJunkie14, xliteratiwhorex, mizskitles220, kaypgirl, Literati44, kylielink, IAmOneOfThem, and Mormon-Girl13.

Disclaimer: I'd love to own Jess, but unfortunately I don't. I guess I can settle for owning this new laptop I used to type the chapter.

* * *

After stopping a small café for dinner, Luke and Jess found an equally small motel down the road in which to spend the night. Both uncle and nephew were exhausted, and collapsed across their respective beds immediately. Jess had lain awake slightly longer than Luke. He could hear the steady snore from the bed over as his meticulous brain continued to work. Carelessly, Jess pushed aside his thoughts and emotions for the morning and let himself finally wind down.

It was early when Luke tugged on his sleeve to pull him out of bed. The imprints of the rumpled sheets were pressed into his left cheek. Stretching, Jess sat up and studied the dingy motel room. Luke had yet to pressure him to talk, but he could only imagine that his patience was wearing thin.

In fact, he had barely uttered a word all morning, Jess thought, as he prodded at his pancakes. He had left them half eaten while Luke picked at his own breakfast of eggs and toast. The waitress appeared to refill his tiny cup with coffee and Luke asked for the check. He swirled the coffee before taking a sip and looking up at his uncle.

"Done yet?" he asked gruffly, eyeing the half eaten stack of pancakes while he thought of the raw batter he had tossed the morning before.

Jess pushed his plate away before setting his fork against the edge. Luke shook his head, noticing that Jess appeared as a wounded pup with his tail tucked between his legs. He sat there, hands in his lap, fingers aching to wander the pages of the deserted paperback on his front seat.

"You okay?"

Jess nodded, keeping his eyes locked on the fly that seemed intent on finishing his breakfast.

Luke decided not to push the issue any further as he dug out his wallet to pay the bill. Still, Jess concentrated on the fly as Luke paid and tipped the waitress. When he stood, the little fly flew off the pancake stack to another syrupy plate in the café.

Luke was used to a biting insult now and then, but the fact that Jess had been completely silent the whole morning worried him. Jess ran his fingers through his messy, gel free hair and shoved his hands back in his pockets.

A little boy. That's what he looked like. Luke tried to shrug the image of eight-year-old Jess, abandoned Jess, sitting on the steps, waiting for his mother to come and get him. It was the same expression his wore that very moment.

His shoulders were hunched, his hair hanging in his eyes. Luke wanted nothing more than to hold his nephew, but he had the sinking feeling that Jess would pull away. He seemed off in his own world that morning, but he couldn't shake the sense that something deep was bothering the boy.

"You've got your wallet, directions, a full tank of gas," Luke said as he hung in Jess's window. Jess pulled the seatbelt into the buckle and glanced up at his uncle. "You have any problems or you need to pull over, just honk the horn and I'll stop."

Jess nodded, causing Luke to clench the fist at his side.

"Got it?"

Jess nodded again and adjusted his rear view mirror a smidge to the right.

Luke sighed and walked off to where his truck was parked two spaces over. He wasn't sure what was wrong, but he needed to find out soon.

* * *

Jess toyed with the crusts of his peanut butter and jelly sandwich. He had leaned over the plate and torn the bread until the crusts were scattered around the sandwich. At first, Luke had embraced the request for peanut butter and jelly, something Jess had stopped eating at age ten, and slapped together the best damn sandwich his nephew would ever eat.

Or stare at, rather, since that appeared to be all he was doing.

Sighing, Luke grabbed the plate and set it on the counter by the sink. Jess peered up at him with hollow eyes, still holding a piece of crust. He crouched down next to his chair and turned the chair to face him.

"Jess, what's going on?" It wasn't the time to yell at him or ask why he took off in the first place. He wasn't going berate his nephew while he was mute.

Jess turned his cheek before looking back to Luke. He shrugged.

"You haven't said much of anything today," Luke reminded him, noting the boyish innocence in his eyes. "I'm not going to yell at you."

"Okay," Jess said softly.

"Why'd you run?" Luke asked, knowing he would need to make himself comfortable for this story. "Come on, let's sit down."

Jess tucked his legs underneath his body and sunk into his sweatshirt. Luke sat on the opposite end of the couch, still wondering why Jess seemed so intimidated.

"I'm sorry about breaking the plate," he said softly. He had noticed the broken shards that were still on the counter when they had arrived home.

"The plate doesn't matter." Luke shook his head and hoped for Jess to continue. When he started playing with the ties on his sweatshirt, he knew this was one conversation he would need to continue to initiate. "Jess?"

"I was going to stay the night at Rory's," he said, "again."

Luke cocked his head to the side. "When did you last stay over there?"

"The night we graduated."

"Why?" Luke asked.

Jess shrugged. "I just...wanted to go for a drive. Rory made me come inside and we played cards until we fell asleep on the floor."

"This time you actually went for a drive," Luke said.

"I wasn't going to." Jess studied his socks. "I just needed to leave."

"Did this have anything to do with your mom?" Luke asked tentatively.

"No," he snapped. "I don't want to talk about her."

"I didn't ask if you wanted to talk about her, I just asked if you ran off because of her."

"No. I didn't." Jess settled against the arm of the sofa.

"Get comfortable," Luke demanded. He already knew this was going to be a long talk.

"Why?"

"Because you're not going anywhere until I know what happened." Jess grunted from the other end of the couch. "And after that, it's debatable."

He huffed and folded his arms across his chest. "We already talked about everything."

Luke raised his eyebrow. "Like what? You apologized for breaking my plate and told me about the time you spent the night at Rory's. That's not everything."

"But isn't it good enough?" Jess pleaded.

"Stop putting up your defenses," Luke said harshly.

Jess moved further away from him on the couch. "Wha…what defenses?" he asked nervously.

Luke threw his hands in the air. "Forget it. Go to bed." Jess stood cautiously and peeled off his sweatshirt. "And give me your goddamn car keys."

After taking a moment to contemplate, Jess pulled his keys from his pocket and tossed them at Luke. Shaking his head, Luke slipped the keys into his own pocket as Jess tossed his jeans into his laundry hamper.

"You will not leave the apartment under any circumstances. Rory will not be allowed up, you will not be allowed down. You will not work." He snapped the skinny novel from Jess's hands. "You will not read."

"Hey!" Jess protested, attempting to grab his book back. Luke pushed the book up on the highest shelf out of his reach. Jess leaned over to pull another book out of his bookcase before Luke stole as many as he could to lump on the top shelf. Jess smacked his hand against the mattress as he let Luke hold as many books as he could captive.

"You will not use the computer," Luke continued, snatching the slender laptop off the desk.

Jess scowled and resisted the urge to throw something at Luke.

"Unless you learn how to talk." Luke said. "You're hiding something." He pointed his finger at his nephew. "And I'm going to get it out of you." He shut the light off in the apartment. "Goodnight. And if you're not in bed when I get up in the morning, there _will_ be hell to pay, I can promise you that."

* * *

Luke figured that Jess would crack within the hour and find it in himself to talk the next morning. When Jess finally got out of bed, which was about noon, he scowled at Luke and hopped in the shower. He was going to be much more persistent that Luke had originally hoped. Then again, Jess did tend to hold his guns.

But after three days, it started to get ridiculous. Rory had stayed away, coming only to the diner for her coffee in a to-go cup. She didn't question Luke's method of parenting or Jess's reasons for avoiding such parenting.

After four days Luke unplugged the cable, as he was certain it was how Jess had been filling his time. He had caught him with a book on the first day and scoured the entire apartment while his nephew was in the shower. When Jess was drying off, he realized that every single book in the apartment was missing.

Luke had stashed them in the truck of Jess's car and kept the key ring clipped to his belt. Jess was not getting out of this punishment unless he talked.

As morning turned to evening once again, Luke came to realize that Jess just wasn't going to talk.

And once again, Luke knew he needed to change his course of action.

"Hey!" Jess yelped as Luke grabbed his utensils and plate while he was in mid-bite. Luke slammed the dish against the counter, the grilled chicken hopping a few centimeters in the air from impact.

"I have dealt with a sulking teenager for six days!" Luke yelled, pointing his finger at Jess. "A mute, sulking teenager." Jess went to take a sip of his milk as Luke's hand swooped down to snatch the glass from his grasp. "And I've had enough! I'm sick of this!" Luke smacked his hand against the kitchen table.

"Then give me my damn books back," Jess snapped as he started to get up. Luke pushed him back into the chair.

"Sit down," Luke hissed. "I'm sick of this. Talk, or you're going to bed without supper."

"Oh, bed without supper. How will I ever survive?" Jess sneered, pushing past Luke.

Luke clenched his fists, avoiding every impulse in his body that was telling him to hit the boy. "We _need_ to have this conversation."

"I don't _need_ to do anything," Jess snapped as he rifled through the drawer in his bed table.

Luke tipped Jess's chin up harshly, forcing his nephew to look him in the eye. "You were scared and you're not going to admit it. Jess, I'm not judging you. I just need to know what happened."

"God! Nothing fucking happened!" Jess pulled Luke's hand off his chin and continued to search through his drawer.

Luke reached out for Jess's arm, the grip tighter than he had been planning.

"Let…let go of me," he said softly, the hardened glint disappearing from his eyes.

Luke dropped his nephew's arm and Jess sunk on the bed sheets. His childish demeanor was back. It was almost as if he couldn't decide how he wanted to act. "Jess…" he started.

"You don't understand!" Jess said. "You wouldn't understand."

"Wouldn't understand what?" Luke asked. "I'm trying to get you to make me understand."

"You don't know what it's like to grow up unwanted," Jess said finally.

"Jess, what…?"

"My mom shipped me off to you at eight with the promises of coming back and having a normal life." Jess sighed and sucked in a breath. "And she didn't. And then she stopped calling. Then you started calling her to take me back because I was starting trouble and you didn't want me around."

"I didn't…"

"You did. You called her the day after my ninth birthday scolding her for not acknowledging it and taking me home as promised." Jess folded his hands in his lap. "Turns out, she still doesn't remember my birthday. Hell, she doesn't know how old I am. She doesn't know me at all. I don't have a mother and I don't have a father. I grew up unwanted." Jess turned on his side away from Luke. "No one even knows anything about me. Sometimes I wonder why Rory even wants me around."

Luke was thrown by Jess's rant, but quickly recovered. "Your birthday is September ninth. You're eighteen years old, five foot eight, one hundred and thirty-nine pounds at your last physical. You secretly love broccoli quiche, but you won't admit it to anyone. Your favorite color is black, you like to write in pencil, and I always wanted you as my kid."

Jess paused as Luke walked away from his bed. His voice was caught in his throat. Wordlessly, he scrambled off the covers and approached Luke before he could sit on the couch. "But you can't wait until I leave."

Luke shook his head. "I wished you wanted to go to Yale. You picked Stanford; you're going to Stanford. If that means we're picking up frequent flyer miles, so be it."

"But the other night…"

"We were arguing because you were being a bonehead about school. It had nothing to do with wanting you gone." Luke picked up the dish from the counter. "Finish your dinner," he commanded, setting the plate at Jess's end of the table.

"You told me I had to go to Stanford," Jess reminded him.

"Because I already put down the deposit and I don't want you going to Harvard just to be with Rory. It's irresponsible," Luke said calmly. He paused. "You did go to New York to see your mother."

His fork clattered to the floor. "No. No, I didn't," Jess denied.

"Yes, you did. You went to see your mother," Luke repeated.

Jess scrambled to pick up the fork from the floor. "How…how did you know?" he asked nervously.

"You did just confirm it," Luke said, sitting across from Jess.

Jess hung his head. Suddenly, the grilled chicken on his plate wasn't as appetizing as it had been ten minutes ago. "I went to see my mom," he confessed.

Luke was glad his voice was low. At least shy, childhood Jess was easier to communicate with. "And what happened?" he asked cautiously.

"A little girl answered the door," he said, wringing his hands in his lap.

"She moved?"

"No." Jess continued to fidget.

Luke sighed. It was definitely going to be one of those conversations. "Jess?"

"She said her mother told her not to talk to strangers. And when Liz showed up at the door…" Jess paused, not sure whether or not he could continue.

"She didn't know it was you," Luke finished.

"She always wanted a daughter," Jess whispered. "She used to tell me that she wished I was a girl." He shook his head. "Now she has that little girl and she forgot all about me."

"Jess, I'm sure…"

"So I got in my car and followed the same road as far as I could and ended up in Pennsylvania."

Luke nodded, still unsure of how to respond to the confession.

"I was going to Rory's, but then I decided I needed to see my mother. I just didn't want to admit it. It wasn't planned. I left the apartment with a pack of cigarettes and a ten dollar bill."

"It's okay, Jess," Luke said softly. "You can be upset."

Jess nodded. "I'm sorry."

"About what?" Luke picked the plate back up from the table. It was evident that the remaining food would not be touched.

"For taking off and then not talking to you for six days after you drove all the way to Pennsylvania to get me," Jess said hurriedly. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Luke placed a hand on Jess's shoulder. "I'm always going to want you, Jess," he said finally, ruffling his nephew's hair. "And I want you to come home as much as you want. I can always spot you airfare as long as it's within reason."

Jess nodded. "Okay." Luke ruffled his hair one last time and turned back to the dishes. "Hey, Luke?"

"Yeah?" Luke turned around and wiped his hands on the dishtowel.

"You don't tell anyone we talk, do you?" he asked.

"The whole sewing circle." Luke smirked. "Worried you'll lose your reputation?"

"No. I just…" Jess shook his head. "Never mind." He pushed in his chair and walked across the apartment to the bathroom, lingering at the doorway. "I think I'll go to bed early," he said before slipping into the bathroom.

The one place he hadn't thought of to look for books was the bathroom cabinet. Jess pulled the door open and his usual stock of paperbacks spilled out. He had been so focused at being angry with Luke that he hadn't realized he had books right under his nose.

Jess pulled a book out of the pile, flipping to page one as he settled against the wall. As he was finishing the second page, a knock came from outside the door. "Yeah?"

"One more thing," Luke said as Jess opened the door. "As long as you don't leave the state without telling me, here are your keys." He tossed the key ring to Jess, who caught it with his free hand. "Your books are in the trunk," he said.

Jess studied his car keys. "Oh, thanks," he said.

"You can go back to reading the book I forgot to take," Luke said, noticing the volume in Jess's hand. He shut the door and left Jess to read.

Jess stared at the car keys in one hand and the book in his other hand. Being angry had taken a lot out of him. For a moment, he wanted to run over to the Gilmore residence and embrace his freedom. What he really wanted was an uninterrupted night of sleep. It had been a week since he had been able to sleep soundly. Rory was important, and his missed her, but he could always join her for breakfast in the morning when he was a bit more lucid.

He wasn't surprised to see Luke trying to catch a couple innings of the baseball game before bed. He did, however, surprise himself by settling on the sofa right next to Luke.

Luke draped his arm around his shoulders, evoking a crooked smile from Jess.

He even let his uncle's arm stay there for fifteen minutes before shrugging it off.

* * *

A/N: Jess was lying in the past chapter about seeing his mother.


	29. Nostalgia and Europe

Ugh, I'm really sorry that this chapter was a long time coming. The whole "real life" thing kicked in with starting back to work and starting school, not to mention that I don't get internet in my dorm room and when I can actually get on the internet in the common room, people randomly yoink my laptop for funny YouTube videos or facebook pages…so that doesn't really help either. Anyway, I'm really sorry for not updating. This was sitting in my notebook and I finally got a chance to type it up. Read, review, complain about how I've suddenly become a shitty updater…all that jazz. Actually, don't make me feel bad. : ( It's my birthday, and I already feel bad enough as it is. Hahaha.

Thanks for the reviews on chapter twenty-eight (even though that was, like, eons ago.) : IAmOneOfThem, gilmorefanforever, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, Curley-Q, EdwardBella4Life, LorLukealways, kathi-ryn, JPNeverlosetheButterflies, DiehardJavaJunkie14, lillitgirlx2, dtng4ever, The Labyrinths Scribe, kylielink, Jeremy Shane, Meredith-Grey, xliteratiwhorex, crazynakedsexpart69, Literati44, mizskitles220, coffeecoffeecoffee, kaypgirl, radiogirl, ShaolinQueen, Polly, ilovenat1995, and CalmingWater1098.

Disclaimer: If I owned Gilmore Girls, I wouldn't have had to slum through four classes in a row yesterday…even though my History professors are awesome, so no real complaints here.

* * *

Jess woke to find himself curled on the couch with a thin sheet thrown over his body. He could only assume that Luke had been watching out for him once again.

Blinking the sleep from eyes, Jess tossed the sheet aside and threw his arms in the air to stretch. His legs were tight from sleeping on the couch all night, but he fought through the stiffness to shuffle downstairs in search of his uncle.

As he started downstairs, Luke flung the curtain aside and appeared with a plate piled with pancakes. "You're already up," he said, handing Jess the plate. "You didn't finish your dinner last night."

Jess accepted the plate, blinking as he stared at the pancakes. "Thanks," he mumbled.

"You okay?" Luke asked.

He nodded. "Just stiff from sleeping on the couch," Jess replied, stifling his yawn. "Thanks for breakfast."

"Yeah." Luke stomped back down the stairs as Jess carried the plate inside the apartment.

They were blueberry chocolate chip pancakes, his favorite, with a dollop of whipped cream and an arrangement of strawberries in the center. Jess settled at the kitchen table with his pancakes after grabbing a fork and a paperback.

He smoothed the whipped cream across the top pancake and popped a strawberry in his mouth, flipping the pages in his book while he chewed.

"Hi." Jess dropped the book and his fork clattered to the ground. Rory was standing in the doorway with an identical plate of pancakes.

"Hey," he greeted her, ignoring the fallen paper back and utensil. He pushed out of the chair and set her plate across the table from him before pulling her close. Her breath muffled against his neck as he snaked his fingers low enough to pluck at the waistband of her shorts.

"Jess," she protested, reaching back to pull his at his fingers.

"What?" he whispered in her ear. She was freshly showered and smelled of flowers, vanilla, and coffee. After not being able to see her, talk to her, or touch her for a week, Jess wanted to throw her on his bed and fuck her senseless.

She pulled back and reached up to stroke his day old stubble. "Pancakes," she reasoned, looping past him to the table. "And we should talk," Rory added.

Talk. Of course. Jess dropped his hand and sat at the kitchen table. He sat there for a moment while Rory cut her pancakes with the side of her fork. His fork was still on the floor, but he had lost his appetite for pancakes.

When Rory noticed the expression on his face, she set her fork aside and folded her hands on the table. "Should I be mad at you?" she asked.

Jess shifted his eyes. "Why?"

"I don't know. Why are you being like this?"

"Like what?" Jess asked.

"Like what? Like _this_." Rory sighed. "We had sex, Jess."

"So now you're mad because we had sex? God, Rory, I didn't coerce you."

"That's not what I meant," Rory protested before he could finish his thought. "I mean, the running away and getting lost, then letting Luke hold you captive for a week rather than talk to him? If it wasn't your mom, did he do something? Did I do something?" she asked.

"It wasn't about you, Rory."

"So what was it?" She watched as he bit his lip. The remaining whipped cream on his pancakes was starting to melt and run down the stack.

"I don't know. It was an impulse," he said, dragging his fingers through his morning hair. He lowered his voice and ended up sounding more sensitive than he had planned. "When you've been abandoned your whole life, it's easy to cast the whole world aside and make a run for it."

"Jess…"

"And it was my mom," he added softly. "I lied."

"Why?" Rory asked.

"'Cause it hurt, and I wasn't going to admit it," Jess said. "I denied it for a week so that I didn't have to tell Luke."

"Tell Luke what?"

"That my mother completely forgot about me and had another kid," he said, rubbing the curve of his ear. "Little girl," he added hastily. "Got out of there as fast as I could."

"Are you okay?" she asked gently, sizing up his anguish from the drop in his tone.

"Doesn't matter anymore," he said, leaving the table to get another fork. The pancakes were probably cold by now, but he was starving.

"If I can do anything…" she started.

"I'm okay," he said, pulling the chair back in toward the table.

"Are you sure?" she asked. "Because it's hard to know that your parent has another family."

"It doesn't matter," Jess said. "It's not like I was ever close to my mother." He pushed her pancakes closer. "I thought you wanted those."

"I do," Rory said. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I'm fine," Jess repeated. "Just eat. Maybe we can go out after we're done."

Rory smiled. "Okay." She shoved a forkful of pancake in her mouth. "I missed spending time with you."

* * *

Rory bit into her ice cream cone as she and Jess strolled around town square. He was sucking the liquefied ice cream from the point of his cone while he rested his hand at Rory's hip. They had been silent for a while, with the whole process of ice cream eating. As Jess popped the remainder of his cone in his mouth, Rory's eyes traveled up to his.

"Do you remember when we first met?" she asked, finishing off her own cone. "I know it's a weird question, and you probably don't remember, but I was just…"

"Over there," Jess said, cutting into her rant. "I was reading and walking and you were about to cross the street, and I bumped into you."

Rory smiled. "And then I fell and cut my knee open."

He cracked a smile and took her hand. "So I had take you over to Luke's and he gave you a bandage and a doughnut."

"I can't believe you remembered," Rory said, her teeth showing from the size of her grin.

Jess shrugged. "Why's that?"

"You're many things, but nostalgic isn't one of them."

"Says who?" Jess asked, peeking up at the night sky.

Rory gripped his hand harder. "I don't know."

"I remember a lot of things," he said.

"I know."

"I'm allowed to be nostalgic," he said, sounding defensive.

"It doesn't tarnish your bad boy image?" she asked jokingly.

"Nah," he said. "I'll rephrase that. I'm allowed to be nostalgic with you."

"Oh, okay." Rory felt his hand tighten around hers.

"Tell me this, then," Jess said, "do you remember the first time I kissed you?" His brown eyes challenged her as she searched to remember not the kiss on the bridge, but a childhood smooch.

She smiled as he sat down in the gazebo with her. "We were twelve and it was the Stars Hollow Middle School winter dance." He nodded for her to go on. "And there was mistletoe. I didn't want to kiss you, but you leaned in and got it over with." Rory pulled her legs up and rested her chin on her knees.

"It's only June," Jess reminded her, noticing the sad expression that had taken over her features. "We have three months."

Rory lolled her head to look at her boyfriend. "I know."

"I'm only grounded for a couple weeks," he reminded her.

"I know," she repeated.

"We should do something for your birthday before you leave," he said.

Keeping her eyes locked on Jess, Rory let her feet touch the floor. "And your birthday," she reminded him.

"Luke's probably going to do something," he said. "I'm leaving a week and half before my birthday."

"We'll be okay," Rory said as she swung her legs back and forth.

"Yeah. I told you we would." Jess hooked his arm around her shoulders and she nestled close enough to settle against his chest. In the background, the crickets chirped gently and the stars sparkled in the night sky.

* * *

Rory was flipped a page in her book as Lorelai set down the phone to join her daughter on the couch. Instead of acknowledging her mother, she continued to read as Lorelai slid closer to her.

"Hey."

Rory looked up and jumped a mile as Lorelai moved away from her face. "Jeez. You could kill a person like that." She marked her place and glanced at Lorelai, who had settled at the other end of the couch.

"That was your grandmother," Lorelai said as Rory focused her attention on her mother.

Rory nodded. "Okay."

"Remember when we were going to spend the summer backpacking through Europe and made the mistake of telling your grandmother?"

"Yeah? But we had to cancel in order to pay for Harvard," Rory reminded her, almost saddened by that fact.

"Well, guess who's going to Europe?" Lorelai asked, tossing her head back.

"Grandma?"

Lorelai shook her head. "Happy Graduation."

"What?" Rory asked, sitting up. "But I was supposed to spend the summer with Jess!"

"Whoa, slow down. Before you get mad about going to _Europe_, it would only be for a two weeks." Lorelai clasped her hand over Rory's mouth while she spoke.

"Oh, okay," Rory said softly. "Why is Grandma sending us backpacking through Europe?"

"You have it all wrong, kid. She's coming with us, booking us hotels, and getting us the best tour guides."

"Europe Grandma's way."

"The Emily Gilmore way."

"But it's Europe," Rory reminded her.

"It's Europe."

"It won't be tainted too much," Rory said. "She'll avoid all the nondescript places and take us around to tourist attractions."

"But it's _Europe,_ Sweets. We're going to _Europe_."

Rory sighed. "I know. I should go tell Jess. Luke's apparently not letting him leave the diner until next month."

Laughing, Lorelai boosted herself off the couch. "He's not going to know if he leaves the apartment."

Rory laughed in response. "Actually, he installed an alarm on the door."

* * *

"So, Europe." Jess slid a slice of apple pie across the counter to Rory.

"Europe," she confirmed as the fork met the point of her apple pie. "I want to go, but I feel bad leaving you here."

Jess shrugged. "Luke grounded me," he reminded her." Might as well go when I'm not allowed to leave the diner."

"Okay." Rory watched as her boyfriend lean across the counter to prop his face up with his arm. "I'll bring you back something."

"I'll hold you to that."


	30. Wisdom Teeth and Applesauce

I know it has been a long time since my last update, and for that, I apologize. As I may have mentioned, I just started college this semester. Thankfully, the semester is now over, with the exception of my final exam for my Psychology class, and I now have time to write more. I'll be out of school until January 19th, so I promise I will be updating as much as humanly possible while I'm on winter break.

So, wow, thirty chapters! I have been working on this chapter for a quite a while now. Every chance I got, I would add something to it. Hopefully you'll all enjoy it. Since Rory and Lorelai have left for their trip to Europe, this chapter consists mostly of Luke and Jess interaction, which you'll definitely miss after Jess and Rory leave for college. I'm sick right now, so hopefully all your reviews will make me feel better.

Thanks for the reviews on chapter twenty-nine: Curley-Q, Jeremy Shane, mizskitles220, dtng4ever, kylielink, DiehardJavaJunkie14, Meredith-Grey, kathi-ryn, kaypgirl, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, literatiwhore, Maygen Lauren, krymsunkiss52, radiogirl, ShaolinQueen, and Hpluvr7.

Disclaimer: Still not mine. How sad.

* * *

Jess awoke quickly, his hand flying to his face. Gasping in pain, he felt around the base of his lamp for the switch. He stumbled to the bathroom and checked in the mirror at his mouth, parting his lips with his index fingers. The throbbing in his gums had yet to subside as he rummaged through the medicine cabinet in vain. When his fingers found a small tube of Orajel, he grabbed a cotton swab and squeezed the watery gel on the tip. Jess drummed his fingers against the side of the sink as he waited for the numbing to take place in his mouth. When the pain in his gums finally subsided, Jess flipped off the light and slipped back into bed.

The next morning, Jess found himself fumbling for the oral pain reliever once again. A squeak of air sputtered from the tiny white tube, but nothing squirted onto the Q-tip. Sighing, Jess tossed the Orajel in the trashcan and grabbed his shoes from their place against his wall.

"Where are you going?" Luke asked as Jess reached for his wallet. So much for sneaking out.

"I was going to Doose's."

"For?" Luke prompted him.

"Orajel," Jess said simply, tossing the wallet back on his dresser in defeat.

"Jeez. I bought you a whole tube the other day for your canker sore. You're not supposed to eat it, you know."

"I know," Jess snapped.

Luke sighed. "You really need more?"

"Yes," Jess grumbled.

"Fine. Then I'll go get you some more." Luke pulled a ten-dollar bill from his pocket and cast a glance at his grounded nephew. "Need anything else?" he grumbled.

"Nope." Jess kicked his shoes off at the wall and they thumped against the floor. "Thanks," he added exasperatedly as Luke exited the apartment. Week two of his confinement had just begun and the imprisonment was driving Jess up and down the wall. Leaning back, Jess concentrated on making patterns from the ripples in the ceiling while he ignored the gentle throbbing in his gums.

The first week trapped in above Luke's diner had brought little enjoyment to the dark-haired boy who was locked up. The first week had also brought a post card and a letter internationally from Rory. The picture of a skyline was taped haphazardly above his bed while the letter sat in a little blue envelope, her precise writing gracing the many notebook pages of affection.

But Jess hadn't concentrated on the countless hours of labor in the diner, or the way the lines seemed to blend together when he read Rory's letter over and over again. Jess was focusing on the thumping in his mouth. He couldn't figure out if he had arched his toothbrush too far to the left one night, or if he simply had a cavity in one of his flawless teeth. The last thing he needed was a dentist, and he refused to let Luke allow him out only to visit one and venture back to confinement.

"Here." Luke opened the door and tossed the box of Orajel at Jess from the doorframe.

Grumbling, Jess snatched up the box and ripped it open.

Luke grabbed the folder that was on his desk and sat at the kitchen table to chip away at the paperwork that had been needlessly stacking up over the week. The bathroom door creaked open and Jess slipped into the seat across from Luke.

"What's the matter?" Luke asked without looking up from the sheet of paper he was writing on.

Jess glanced down at the table.

Luke wasn't particularly in the mood to play guessing games with his nephew. "Your mouth still hurt?" he asked, flipping a page.

"Never mind, it's fine." Jess shuffled to the other side of the room and cracked open the book he was reading. Luke shook his head and tapped his pencil against the wooden surface. Perhaps the hours of imprisonment were finally taking a hold on his nephew.

* * *

"Ow! Jesus Christ, what are you doing to me?" Jess whined like a struck pig as Dr. Goldstein shoved the mirror back into his mouth.

He sighed exasperatedly at his troublesome patient. "Just looking around, Jess."

The grumbling teen spotted Luke's reflection in the mirror and shot him a perturbed glance. After putting up with two more days of his nephew's incessant irritation, Luke had finally sprung for a dentist's appointment. Even with Jess pleading that he didn't need to see a dentist, Luke dragged him in anyway.

Jess watched as Dr. Goldstein studied the X-rays of his mouth. "Looks like these are coming out, Jess." He pointed to the little white marks on the side of his gums.

Jess paled. "What's coming out?" he asked.

"Your wisdom teeth." Dr. Goldstein smiled crookedly and shoved the X-rays into the manila folder on the counter.

"Now?" Jess asked, scrambling to get out of the seat and room as fast as he could. There was no way anyone was coming near him with a scalpel to take out his teeth.

Dr. Goldstein chuckled lightly as Jess pressed his back against the wall. "No, not now. We'll make an appointment."

* * *

Jess opened one eye as he moved the sheet off his face. He was still groggy from having his wisdom teeth taken out that morning, but he was coherent enough to notice Luke bustling around the kitchen area in the upstairs apartment. The cotton stuffed in his mouth was drying out his tongue, but he didn't want to take it out just yet. The little twinge of pain struck his gums, and Jess pulled the sheet further off his body.

A tall glass of water and two pills sat on a napkin next to his lamp. Swiftly, he removed the cotton from his mouth and downed the pills with water.

"Sleep well?" Luke grunted from the other side of the room.

"Yeah." Jess pulled the sheet back up to meet his chin. "What are you doing?"

"Making applesauce."

Jess squinted as his eyes continued to adjust to the fluorescent lights. Nodding, he squirmed to find a more comfortable position in bed. "Why?"

"You like applesauce."

Jess nodded sleepily. "Yeah." Jess sat in silence while Luke continued to peel apples. "Why are you making applesauce?" he asked again.

"You like it," Luke replied again, tossing a peeled apple into the bowl in front of him.

Jess shrugged. "So?"

Luke looked away from the apple he was peeling. "You just got your wisdom teeth taken out," he responded. "What else are you supposed to eat?"

Jess thought about it for a moment and fingered the bed sheet that covered his leg. "I don't know."

"Well, the paper said applesauce, so I'm making you applesauce." Luke turned his attention back to the process of peeling apples and slipped the red skin off the fruit.

"Okay," Jess mumbled, pulling the sheet back over his body.

Luke peered over at his sleepy nephew with a slight smile. "Should be ready by the time you wake up," he said. "Go ahead and take another nap."

Jess nodded and secured his head against the cotton pillow. He could feel the pain in his mouth slowly subsiding with the painkiller he had taken right after waking up. "Thanks, Luke," he murmured.

As he finished cleaning the apples, Luke wiped his hands on the towel sitting next to him on the table. He knew from the three-hour nap Jess had just woken up from that his nephew would be out of commission for a touch longer. Painkillers always seemed to have that dopey, sleepy effect on Jess. Luke remembered when Jess broke his arm when he was ten years old. It was his left arm, so it didn't set him back in writing or other creative exploits of the typical fourth grader. The thing that seemed to bother Jess the most was the pain of his broken bone. For the pain, his doctor prescribed the heaviest dose he could give the boy who was nearly in tears.

Luke had been skeptical of giving Jess such strong medication, but it made his ten-year old nephew smile just a little when it started working. With that, Jess slept through the first and second day after breaking his arm. By the next few days, he was still spending a chunk of time rested under the covers in bed. Luke couldn't imagine how the kid could sleep so much, but he humored him at that point knowing that his arm hurt and that he was finally feeling better.

Upon a hearing a light snore from the direction of his nephew's bed, Luke left his seat and ventured downstairs to check the mail. It had been some time since the last post card or letter from Europe, and Luke hoped the next delivery would carry better news for Jess. She gently broke the news that Emily had slyly planned for a three-week trip rather than the two she had originally revealed. Jess wasn't completely devastated about the extra week, but Luke knew he was at least slightly annoyed at Rory's grandmother.

As promised, a post card from Italy sat in that day's mail. Rory's precise handwriting occupied nearly every bit of white space available on the back of the card. Without reading it, Luke slid it aside as he sorted the mail. As he flipped through statements from vendors and monthly bills for water and electricity, a slim envelope fell from the stack.

He stopped dead in his tracks. Luke glanced down at the envelope before discarding the rest of the mail on the counter in favor of picking it off the floor. The envelope was addressed to Jess in a bold, black typeface. Without pausing to look at the return address label, Luke flipped the envelope over. Carefully, he went to slip his finger under the sealed flap. Luke knew it was an intrusion of privacy, but Jess had been considerably secretive lately, and he hoped this letter would provide him with either reassurance or evidence.

The Stanford seal jumped out immediately as Luke unfolded the immaculate letter. He skimmed past the introduction to the body of the letter and gritted his teeth as the writer mentioned the summer program at Stanford, where Jess would be required to attend the university on July 5th to participate in an accelerated semester. Letting out a breath, Luke flipped the page to where he was informed that Jess would continue with school as soon as the summer semester ended. He leaned against the counter with the notice informing Jess that spaces were limited gripped in his hand. Unsure of how to react, Luke shoved the letter back into the envelope and folded it into the pocket of his jeans.


	31. Coming Home

Ugh. I know it's been such a long time since I've last updated. I'm sorry. Time just got away from me with school assignments, my job, and the leftover scraps of my social life. Since I've been running the raffle table to support the historical association at school, I've been jotting down parts of chapters on scrap paper while the table is empty of visitors. So here's the product of the last couple of weeks sitting at this lonely, lonely table. It seems like an empty promise, but I'm going to try updating again. Reviews make me aware of people following the story, so read and review. : )

Thanks for the reviews on chapter thirty: gilmorefanforever, ShaolinQueen, Polly, kylielink, DiehardJavaJunkie14, Curley-Q, Mallikad, Jeremy Shane, Maygen Lauren, mizskitles220, and radiogirl.

Disclaimer: It's a good thing none of the characters or themes of Gilmore Girls belong to me, otherwise they would go on hiatus all too often.

* * *

At the end of the last week of his grounding, Jess could barely believe that he could freely step outside. However, he forgot how bored he was outside the apartment with Rory still gone. There was still a week and a half left to her trip and he wasn't quite sure what to do with himself.

"You're not grounded anymore," Luke reminded him as he uncapped a beer and settled on the couch. "Go out," he suggested.

Jess shook his head. "No place to go," he responded blandly, fingering the pages in his book.

"Do something," Luke said. Jess shrugged and set the book aside. "For Christ's sake, do laundry if you're really that bored." Jess crossed the room to the laundry hampers and started sorting the clothes into colors. Pleased with himself for suggesting Jess do a chore that he personally hated doing, Luke turned back to the baseball game while Jess continued to sort the laundry.

After the laundry finished, Jess lumped the clothes into a basket by the couch. Luke matched his socks the way he liked them as Jess separated his jeans from Luke's. The baseball game still played across the screen as they sat in silence folding the laundry.

As the pile tapered down to just the dryer sheet, Luke realized he was missing a sock. "Can you check the hamper?" he asked Jess, who was putting his clothes away in his dresser. Jess nodded and headed back over in the direction of laundry hampers. At the bottom of Luke's laundry bucket was the missing sock and a crumpled envelope. Curiously, Jess reached for the envelope and noticed his name on the front. Abandoning the sock, Jess pulled the letter out of the envelope from Stanford and started to read.

"Did you find the sock?" Luke asked, noticing that Jess was sitting on the floor.

"Yeah. I found the sock," Jess replied bitterly, shoving the envelope aside. He plucked the sock from the bottom of the laundry hamper and tossed it to Luke. "Wash it next time." Jess stood up and slipped on his sneakers.

"Where are you going?" Luke asked as Jess grabbed his sweatshirt.

"Out," Jess grumbled. "Might as well."

"Okay." Luke sighed, wondering what had caused the sudden change in attitude. After the door slammed shut, Luke returned the sock to the dirty laundry pile. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted an envelope balled up on the floor. He bent down to pick it up and realized it was the letter from Stanford that he had found in the mail last week. "Shit," he whispered, placing the letter on Jess's bed. He probably had some explaining to do.

Luke wasn't surprised when the door banged shut at three in the morning. He could almost smell the alcohol that was more than likely on Jess's breath, along with the stench of cigarette smoke that lingered on his clothes. "Have fun with your friends?" Luke asked as Jess flung himself on the bed.

Jess didn't respond, so Luke figured it would be better to save the conversation and the lecture that followed for the daylight hours.

When he woke up the next morning, Jess was sleeping on his stomach while snoring lightly. Luke didn't have the heart to wake him as he passed the bed on the way to the bathroom. He noticed that the letter had made its way to the floor sometime during Jess's scuffle with the sheets during the last night.

Luke came out of the bathroom to find Jess sitting on his bed, the letter clasped in his hands.

"You hid this from me," Jess accused him.

Hanging his head, Luke sat next to Jess. He hadn't exactly meant to hide it from him; he had just forgotten that it was in his pocket. Luke was actually going to try talking to Jess the night he had found it, but Jess hadn't been coherent enough even both attempting a conversation. "Jess," Luke started, "I didn't mean to keep it from you." Jess folded the letter sloppily and creased it until the pages would fit back in the envelope.

"It's not that big a deal, I guess." He tossed the envelope aside and glanced up at his uncle.

"I just wasn't sure about you leaving so early," Luke continued. "Wanted to find the right time to - "

"Talk about it," Jess finished. "I know."

Luke shot him a half smile. "We okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, everything's okay," Jess replied. "Don't think I'd want to leave that soon either."

Luke's features hardened. "Now that that's out of the way, let's talk about last night…"

* * *

Jess leaned against the counter as he watched people walk past the diner while his book lay open on the surface. The day had not been busy for him, but he was waiting for Rory to come back from the airport. After three weeks of post cards and missing her, she was finally coming home.

But she was supposed to be home over an hour ago. Jess sighed and refilled his Pepsi glass from the fountain. It had already been a long day and he wasn't in the mood to see Rory tomorrow after three weeks if he could see her that day.

"Jess, you want something to eat?" Luke asked as he noticed his nephew slumped against the counter with his hand pressed against his cheek.

Jess shrugged. "Sure."

"What do you want?" Luke asked.

"Cheeseburger and fries sound good." Jess passed over to the other side of the counter and perched himself on a stool.

The bell over the door jingled, but Jess continued to stare at the upside down cover of his book.

"Guess who?" she asked after slipping her delicate fingers over his eyes.

Jess turned around in his stool as Rory moved her fingers to his hips. Standing, he took her in his arms to lift her. Rory wrapped her legs around his waist and squealed joyously as he twirled her gently in the center of the diner.

"You're back," he replied with a smile after setting her down on the floor.

"I'm back," she replied, wrapping her arms around his neck.

* * *

Friday Night Dinner and the Gilmore mansion scared Jess to no end. He had only attended dinner once in the time he and Rory started dating, but Jess has the pleasure of tagging along with the Gilmores several times over the course of their friendship.

His first time was one of Rory's birthday parties. Being a rambunctious nine year old, Jess failed to make a good impression on the elder Gilmores.

At eleven, Rory forced him to tag along to another, smaller, social gathering. This time, Jess tried to stay as far away from the Gilmores as possible.

The official Friday Night Dinners began when Rory started attending Chilton Preparatory because Emily and Richard were footing the bill. Each week, Rory would set off with her mother and Jess would spend Friday nights with his friends and alcohol or the girl of the week. Only once before they started dating did Jess make an appearance at an official Friday Night Dinner, this time stealing scotch from the drink cart, throwing up on the living room rug, and leaving with the possibility of never coming back.

Never coming back? He wished that to be true. Even after that event, Emily insisted they meet Jess as Rory's boyfriend instead of just her best friend. Although that dinner failed to go smoothly as well, Jess had been invited back for another Friday Night Dinner.

Friday Night Dinner scared Jess to no end. He straightened his tie several times before getting it to lie flat against his white oxford shirt.

"I think you're putting too much thought into this," Luke said as he noticed Jess combing his hair again. He was trying to get one of his many cowlicks to stay tamed with the rest of his hair. No matter how much hair gel he continued to use that night, it just wouldn't cooperate.

"It's the Gilmores," Jess remarked. "Too much thought is never enough," he reminded Luke.

Luke thought back to the brief meetings with Emily Gilmore, one in particular where she referred to him as a lumberjack. "Maybe you have a point," he conceded, "but if you keep fixing yourself, you're going to be late."

And lateness was one of Emily Gilmore's peeves. Jess sighed. He wasn't going to erase the Gilmores' perception of him with flawless hair and a flat tie. The most he could hope for was a smile and a nod of approval, but perhaps that was even asking too much.

When Rory knocked at the apartment door, Jess knew it was time to stop fussing with his appearance and hurry. The one thing he neglected to do was find the dress shoes that dated back to Chilton. In frustration, Jess stuffed his feet in a pair of battered Chucks and earned a stiff glare from Rory. She helped him look under the bed until they located both shoes and dashed out the door to the Jeep that was parked at the curb in front of the diner.

Emily tried to ignore Jess during drinks, merely glancing at him once to hand him the seltzer he had requested. The look was brief, but Jess has to dart his eyes to the glass until he felt her eyes leave his. Rory noticed he was uncomfortable, probably because everyone present remembered the incident that took place during the last Friday Night Dinner that Jess attended.

"Rory, Harvard is extremely close. Are you looking forward to leaving?" Richard asked tentatively, knowing that the air was thick in the dining room.

"I can't wait," Rory said with a smile. "My orientation is next month, where I can register for my classes and stay over night to test out the dorms."

"What about you, Jess?" Richard asked, hoping to include the silent young man. "I've heard from Rory that you have decided to attend Stanford. It's a fine school."

"Yeah, Stanford," Jess replied as he broke a piece off his roll. As Rory's elbow met contact with his ribcage, Jess cringed and dropped the piece of bread. "Yes," he corrected himself. "It's getting closer," he added, picking up the piece of bread again.

Jess hoped that Richard would stop talking to him, but he continued. "What do you plan on studying?" Richard asked.

Sucking in a breath, Jess placed the roll back on his plate. Majors were an issue for him because he wasn't particularly decided on his career goals. Unlike Rory, he didn't have his life planned out from day one. After Rory nudged him with her elbow again, he realized that he had yet to give an answer. "English," he said plainly. It was, after all, one of the only subjects he excelled in. Jess had a brain for calculus, biology, and physics, but he didn't hold an interest in anything to do with those fields. "Literature and creative writing," he specified.

"Wonderful," Richard replied. "What do you plan on doing after you graduate?"

The bread Jess had finally managed to put in his mouth lodged in his throat, causing him to gag. "What?" he choked. "I still need to actually get through college before I figure that out!" Without skipping a beat, Rory elbowed Jess in the ribs again. "Ow! For Christ's sake, you have bony elbows! Stop doing that!"

Rory's face flushed as Jess snapped at her. She knew Emily had been fishing for reasons not to like Jess and she had just handed her one on a silver platter.

"Yeah, Rory, your elbows suck!" Lorelai piped up from across the table before Emily could react. She could smell the tension a mile away and knew she needed to step in.

"Lorelai, please!" Emily scolded. "You know better than to use that language at the table."

Jess reached under the table and squeezed Rory's hand as Emily started to lecture at Lorelai. "Sorry," they whispered in unison.


	32. The End of Days

Hey all! It's summer, which means I will be back to consistently updating. As of now, I already have a chapter of Somewhere Over the Sun that I need to edit. Right now I'm in Virginia rather than Boston, so I have a 12 hour train ride home on Monday, which leaves me writing time. Expect updates again! Also, I've calculated that there's roughly ten chapters left in Diamonds and Rust.

Thanks for the reviews on chapter thirty-one, though few and far between. Hope that isn't going to be the trend. ShaolinQueen, Curley-Q, DiehardJavaJunkie14, kylielink, That Don't Make me a Bad Guy, Hpluvr7, mizskitles220, and radiogirl.

Disclaimer: I don't claim to own anything associated with Gilmore Girls.

* * *

Jess awoke and leaned over to cross another day off his calendar. The summer was quickly coming to a close and his year long stay in California was seemed to be creeping up as well. Still sitting in bed, he reached over to his bed table for the cell phone that he had received from Luke a couple weeks back. It rang four times before Rory's answering machine picked up on the line.

"They stopped by earlier," Luke said. "Shopping trip."  
"Oh." Jess put the phone back on his nightstand and readjusted in bed. It felt like a good day to sleep in and not worry about the impending college experience.

A couple of hours later, Jess was sitting at the kitchen table with a cheeseburger and a notebook filled with his packing list. It was growing longer by the minute and Jess couldn't imagine taking everything he needed on a plane across the country.

"How's the list?" Luke asked as he settled in the kitchen chair across from Jess.

"Long," Jess said, holding up his notebook.

"You're flying," Luke reminded him. "Pack light."  
"But I'm going to need a printer," Jess protested. "And maybe a mini fridge and…"

Luke stopped him. "We can buy those things for you in California. You can't take a printer on the plane."

"But what about the end of the year? I can't take this stuff back on a plane," Jess pointed out.

"So we'll get you storage space in California. That way, everything's there for you all the time," Luke said, proud that he had cooked up an answer as quickly as Jess had spit out the question.

"What about when I graduate?" Jess asked.

Luke sighed. "I really don't think we have to look that far ahead."

Jess peered down at his list. "Okay."

"All set?" Luke asked. "You want more fries or something?"

"Sure," Jess answered, marking a line through one of the items on his list. His cell phone rang from across the room, causing Jess to jump up and abandon the notebook.

"Hey," he answered smoothly, spreading out on his messy bed.

"I bought you something," Rory said. "I'm on my way over."

"You what?" Jess asked, only to find that Rory had already hung up on him. Sighing, he hung his own phone up and attempted to locate his sneakers so he could meet her downstairs.

"Hi," she said, greeting him with a kiss. Without missing a beat, Rory shoved the little plastic bag at Jess. "It's no big deal, but it's just for when we're apart. Open it."

Jess accepted the plastic bag, but didn't open it as Rory requested. Smirking, he handed it back. "Give it to me later," he said.

"What?" Rory asked, puzzled.

"Give it to me later," Jess repeated, more fervently than the first.

"What? Why?"  
"Because," he stated plainly. "I have something for you."

Rory rolled her eyes. "Jess, this isn't a parting gift. It's just something I picked up Target while I was buying sheets. Open the damn thing," she requested harder, shoving the package into his hands again.

Jess sighed and opened the plastic bag. He pulled out the red stationary set out and made a face at Rory. "What's this for?"

She smacked him on the shoulder. "It's for writing," she said, rolling her eyes. "You know, to me? Since you didn't do that the last time we were apart for a long time."

Jess shuffled his sneaker against the stair. "Yeah, I know. I'm sorry about that."

"Don't worry about it," she said, noticing that Jess appeared guilty about the Washington D.C. incident even though it happened a year ago. "We can talk on the phone, too," she reminded him. "It will be easier this time around."

He dropped the stationary set and plastic bag on the stair behind him and buried his face in Rory's hair. "I'm going to miss you," he whispered softly between the delicate strands of brown hair.

"I know," she replied. "It might be good for us, though," she reconsidered. The thought of being away from Jess for so long had haunted Rory at first, but the longer she thought about it, the more she was almost excited to be allowed to see the world by herself. It wasn't that Jess was holding her back; it was just that she had never been on her own before.

"Huh?" Jess asked, letting go of the section of hair he had been holding.

"I just mean that we haven't had any time to see the world without each other. You're my best friend and I love you," Rory started. "I don't know what I would do without you, but we've never really been apart." She motioned with her hands.

"So you want to…?" Jess paused. "You want to break up?"

"No!" Rory shouted, holding his shoulders. "I mean, this is good for us. If we both went to Harvard, we'd have the same classes and the same assignments, and the same extracurricular activities. Remember how much we used to fight and argue and compete at Chilton?"

Scraping his teeth against his lips, Jess tried to remember all the countless times they had studied together and come out of an exam with different grades; there were all those times they competed for a article in the paper and had come out with their egos bruised because someone else got the assignment they wanted. He fought tooth and nail to be better than Rory in areas he couldn't compete and, after a while, he felt what he was doing was wrong. "I guess I understand," he conceded.

"Wouldn't it be nice to not start an argument about Hemingway in English with me?" Rory asked.

"Yeah," Jess said, grinning in remembrance of the time they had both gotten kicked out of Mr. Medina's class for starting a ruckus. "So you're okay with me going away now?" he asked.

Rory shrugged. "I don't know if I'm completely okay with you being across the country. I haven't really experienced anything without you. I don't know how the next couple of months are going to be."  
Sighing, Jess picked up the stationary kit and stuffed it back in the bag. He motioned for Rory to join him upstairs. "Listen, Luke and I decided that I'm not coming home for Thanksgiving."

"Wait, what?" Rory burst. "You have to come home for Thanksgiving! It's a holiday!"  
"Yeah, but it's a long weekend and two long plane rides. The entire weekend will be spent trying to adjust my internal clock," Jess reasoned.

"But it's _Thanksgiving_!" Rory spurted.

"I don't even get out of classes until the day before," Jess said. "By the time I get home on a plane, it will be Thanksgiving already. I can't do that."

Rory leaned against the doorframe. "You're not coming home until December."

"I know. It's really far away. I'll make it up to you," Jess promised.

"Well, okay. As long as I get to see you eventually," Rory grumbled as he pulled her into a hug.

"It's okay," Jess said. "We'll think of something. We could even get a webcam and talk over the internet," he suggested.

Rory smiled at his musing. "Okay. That sounds good."

* * *

Jess rolled over in bed on Monday morning and studied the row of bags lined up by the door. His flight was in six hours and by that time tomorrow morning, he would be California. "Morning," Luke greeted him as he set down a mug of hot chocolate with whipped cream on top. Chocolate shavings were sinking into the white swirl on his cup. "Rory's coming over for pancakes in ten minutes," he reminded Jess, handing him a napkin as the chocolate dripped on his sweatpants.

"Yeah, I know." Rory was leaving for Harvard in two days. Jess was starting classes on Wednesday and needed to be there by tomorrow morning for his move in day. Rory, on the other hand, would have to spend her last few days of summer missing Jess and wondering if she would really get to see him for Christmas. The Thanksgiving break decision had not just been Luke's, but his as well. It was too difficult to get a plane ride for just a weekend, never mind the amount that it would cost to come to Connecticut just to eat turkey.

"Do you have everything?" Luke asked as he poured pancake batter on the griddle.

"I think so," Jess said, fanning the steaming hot chocolate. Luke knew what he liked, even if it was summer and technically too warm out to be drinking hot chocolate. "I hope so," he added futilely, thumbing the handle of the mug.

"You'll be fine," Luke reassured him.

"Didn't say I wouldn't be," Jess said quickly.

"Sure you don't want me to go ahead and book a flight in November?" Luke asked for the umpteenth time that week.

"I'm sure," Jess responded again. "It's just not worth it."

Luke shrugged. "I can swing it if you want me to."

"It's _okay_," Jess pressed harder. "I can handle being away for a couple of months."

Luke turned back to the griddle, noting that the first batch of pancakes had already burned. Sighing, he scraped them into the trash and silently started making new ones. He knew this would happen, and he was sorry that he suggested it to Jess in the first place. Not the pancakes, of course, but not coming home for Thanksgiving. The textbooks Jess needed for his classes turned out to be more expensive than he originally thought, so he had just been grumbling about how impractical a flight home for Thanksgiving would be. Unfortunately, Jess agreed, which was the one thing Luke had dreaded since Jess announced that Stanford was in California. Luke was afraid that Jess wouldn't come home once he was away from Stars Hollow. He was, after all, a "big city" boy and liked his freedom. After Jess became quite adamant he was staying in California for Thanksgiving, Luke had been trying to steer him in the opposite direction by telling him it wasn't really that expensive to get a flight back to Connecticut.

The knock on the door startled both Luke and Jess. Rory peeked in to the quiet apartment and smiled at Jess, who was still sitting on the bed drinking his large mug of hot chocolate. "I come bearing gifts," she added, holding out the tiny package wrapped in shimmery green paper.

Jess grinned and pulled a box that had been sloppily wrapped the night before. "Here," he said, placing it on the end of his bed. "This is for you." Rory sat on his bed with him and took in the sight of her boyfriend in his pajamas. She grasped the paper on her present and pulled out a fancy leather bound notebook with a satin bookmark. A matching pen was taped carefully to the binding. "There's more in there," Jess pointed out as she became fixated on the delicate pages of the notebook.

"It's beautiful," she said, stroking the binding and then the magnetic clasp. "Here, open yours," she requested, sliding the package closer to Jess on the bed.

"Okay." Jess peeled back the tape as Rory dove back into the box of miscellaneous items that Jess had thrown together for her. She sorted through a myriad of pens in assorted colors and found a small white box buried under the office supplies. She noticed that Jess had suddenly become attentive as she reached for the nondescript box. He had already opened the simple paperback and gift card that accompanied the book.

"You're watching me closely," she noted, hesitating at the box cover.

"I'm waiting for you to open it," he said, glancing over at the stack of pancakes that Luke had already started piling on the kitchen table.

She opened the box and found a delicate bracelet encrusted with her birthstone. "Jess, I…"

"I'm not going to be here for your birthday and I wanted to see your face when you opened it. I could have just mailed it, but I didn't want to do that," he explained hastily. "Want me to put it on you?"

She nodded and he secured the clasp around her wrist. "It's beautiful," she said. "Thank you." Leaning in to kiss him, Rory steadied herself against his leg.

"Not to interrupt, but breakfast is all set and I'd really like it if you didn't do that here," Luke said loudly.

Jess groaned. "Yes, Luke."


	33. Homesick

I've been horribly out of touch with the Gilmore world and fanfiction. Truth is, it has taken me much too long to crank out this chapter. I'm sorry. I don't know why, but I just haven't been inspired enough to write. However, after I picked up where I left off, I really got back into the story tonight. I'm going to try updating more often as long as there is still interest in the new chapters. Leave me a line and even follow my writing twitter, which I'll update with how chapters are going to even for help with ideas. The link is set as my homepage in my profile since I can't post it here. Enough with the self-promotion, though, on with the chapter.

Thanks for all the reviews on chapter thirty-two: ShaolinQueen, I-Luv-Jess-Mariano, DiehardJavaJunkie14, Jeremy Shane, kylielink, frequentlydazzeledbylit, Curley-Q, literatiwhore, and mizskitles220.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Gilmore Girls.

* * *

"Good morning!" Devin shouted from the bunk bed across the room. Jess pulled a pillow over his head and attempted to drown out his roommate. As usual, his girlfriend had called to wake him. Devin, by nature, was a loud kid, a big, burly guy from the South that projected more than he realized. For the last month, Jess had dealt with the early morning wake up calls from Devin's girlfriend back home. The calls were not what woke Jess up every morning promptly at seven-thirty; it was Devin's responses back to her. On the days when didn't have class at eight, Jess didn't appreciate being awake two hours sooner than he wanted.

That, unfortunately, was one of those days. Jess didn't have his English class until ten, but he was awake at seven-thirty. Groaning, he struggled to scoot further under his covers until Devin finally hung up the phone. Jess waited until Devin closed his cell phone and dressed quickly to leave for class before emerging from under the covers.

Just as he had gotten back to sleep, his own cell phone trilled from the desk. Groaning, Jess threw off the covers and answered with a frustrated, "Yeah?"

Luke, taken aback from the roughness in his nephew's voice, cleared his throat. "Good morning to you, too."

"Yeah. Morning." Jess flung the covers aside and slipped back under them. "It's early."

"It's eight-thirty."

"It's early."

"You have class," Luke reminded him.

"Yeah, in like _two hours_," Jess groaned.

"Sorry. I worry when I don't hear from you for an entire week."

Jess groaned again. "I'm busy. There's a lot to get done."

"Rory got a call."

"How would you know that?" Jess asked.

"If Lorelai didn't relay the message that you were fine, then I probably would have assumed, but it's Rory. I know you'll call her first."

"There's no…yeah okay. I called Rory." Jess rubbed his temples. An interrogation was too much for him this early in the morning. "Again, reason for calling?"

"Booked your winter break flight. I'm mailing you the information and ticket later today."

"Which makes sense to call me hours before this actually happens." Jess could already tell this was going to be an awkward conversation that would continue so that he would not actually be able to get any more sleep. Luke did this to him constantly since the semester had started, and feeding into it by not calling was obviously not helping any more.

"You have class later."

"Always," Jess said. "In fact, I think I have class now so I'm going to let you go."

"Jess," Luke warned.

"Right," Jess said, sighing as he looked at the displayed on his alarm clock.

"I should let you go. You mentioned more sleep before class."

"Yeah, thanks," Jess grumbled. "Talk to you later." Jess tossed the phone into a pile of clothes on the floor. After shifting into a comfortable position and burying himself under the covers, his alarm began to blare.

* * *

"You're listening to KZSU 90.1 FM. I'm Jess and this is "Master of Puppets." Metallica blasted out of the speakers as Jess took off his headphones. Leaning back in his chair, Jess swiveled around to face his friend Patrick, who was sitting at the other end of the room adjusting the sound.

"Good show so far," Patrick commented, looking away from the switchboard.

"Yeah. It's nice having something to do," Jess said, turning back to examine the songs on that night's playlist.

Jess and Patrick had met in their English class and quickly bonded over books and music. Patrick was also an English major, but his concentration was in writing instead of literature. The pair realized they lived in the same building and had study sessions over cold pizza and blaring classic rock.

Which, of course, lead them to the idea of a radio show on campus. Every Tuesday and Thursday nights they would meet by the cafeteria, have dinner, and head over to the production center. Patrick handled technical issues, while Jess had come to realize that he was a decent on-air personality. There wasn't much talking on their show, just enough to break up the music.

"How's the girlfriend?" Patrick asked.

"Rory's good," Jess said, not going into detail. He knew he was lucky that his long distance relationship had lasted so long. Patrick and his girlfriend had already split up and she was only waiting for him in Arizona.

"Long as you guys are good," Patrick said, suddenly immersing himself with the switchboard. He was sorry he asked, mainly because he was going home for Thanksgiving next week and Jess would not. There was some sort of distant fear in his mind that something was going to happen and he was the only support system Jess had at school.

"Did you finish that paper for your history class?" Jess asked, anxious to get off the subject of relationships.

"God, that thing was a killer," Patrick said, flipping a tab on the switchboard. "You know that song's ending soon, right?"

Jess quickly turned back to the playlist as "Master of Puppets" faded from the sound system. "Next song is a personal favorite of mine. This is "London Calling" by The Clash. As always, send in your requests to me at the station and we'll see about getting them on-air."

* * *

"Aw jeez. What the hell is that?" Luke asked, noticing the twisted straw in Lorelai's soda.

"It's a curly straw." Lorelai sucked the soda up the pink plastic straw and Luke watched the liquid curl around the many bends before reaching her lips. "Isn't it cool?"

Luke rolled his eyes. "Why can't you use a normal straw?" He asked, pulling a wrapped straw from under the counter.

"Because curly straws are better," Lorelai insisted. Pausing, she pulled a blue curly straw out of her purse and grabbed the straight straw Luke was holding. "See?" she asked, comparing the two drinking straws.

Not looking for another odd debate, Luke nodded. "Better," he agreed, snatching the wrapped straw from Lorelai. "Where do you find these things?"

"Back of the cabinet. I was looking for chocolate and found a whole bag of crazy straws. This one changes color with temperature." Lorelai gripped the straw and Luke watched the pink change into purple. "They used to be Rory's favorite."

Luke sighed. Every single time Lorelai sat down in front of him she had something to say about Rory. "Any word as to when she's coming home for Thanksgiving?" he asked.

"Tuesday night," Lorelai said. "She's going to hop on a bus and hopefully be home around dark. I wanted to come get her, but she insisted in taking the bus."

"Well, she's more independent now," Luke said. "That's the only transportation she has in Boston."

"I guess. Any word on Jess?"

"He's…fine," Luke said. "He doesn't need or want anything. He seems perfectly happy in his own little corner of the country."

"Don't look so down," Lorelai said, noting the expression that had crossed her friend's face. "He's coming home for Christmas."

"He doesn't have anywhere else to go," Luke said. "The dormitories close for winter break. He has to come home."

"It's not going to be a pity visit!" Lorelai exclaimed, shouting louder than she had originally planned.

Luke took a step back. He wasn't accustomed to Lorelai yelling, especially at him. The tartness in her voice had momentarily knocked the wind out of him, but he was in a fighting mood so he stepped up to the plate. "Of course it isn't going to be a pity visit!" he shouted back. "Your _daughter_ is going to be here."

"Rory's not everything to him!"

"Yes, she is. I hear most of what happens with Jess from you!"

"So you're jealous of a nineteen year old?" Lorelai laughed. "It's not _her_ fault you're disconnected from Jess."

"It's not mine, either."

Lorelai sighed. She could continue the shouting match if she wanted. Instead, she banged her hand on the counter. Her empty plate jumped an inch before smacking back down. "Get a grip," she said. "Jess is going to come home for _you._ He's homesick, but he's a headstrong kid who isn't going to admit it. Don't call him tomorrow. Don't call him for Thanksgiving. Eventually, he's going to call because he misses you and he'll stop rolling his eyes every time he sees your name on the caller I.D."

* * *

"It isn't too late for Luke get you a flight home," Rory said quietly. She reminded him of this at least one a week since he had declined the original offer for Thanksgiving.

"It's too expensive and there's too much jet lag," Jess grumbled, leaning back on his bed. "It took me long enough to adjust to the time difference originally."

"Fine." Rory tapped her fingers against her desk, eyes studying the laptop sitting open on the surface. "How are things?"

"Things are good," Jess said.

"Okay."

"How are…your things?" Jess asked.

"Equally good."

"Good."

Rory sighed. She wasn't getting much out of this conversation and there was homework that needed to be done. "I hate the conversations that are five words or less," she finally said.

"That was more than five words."

Rory sighed. "Jess come home," she whined.

"You're not home."

"No, but I will be."

"I'll be home in less than a month anyway!" Jess said, raising his voice without thinking.

Rory sighed and closed her laptop. "I have things to work on."

"Okay," Jess said, pulling on the pesky hangnail that had snagged on everything that day. "I'll call you tomorrow."

"Love you."

"Love you too," Jess said before hanging up the phone.

"That sounded rough," Cecile said, leaning over the side of her bed.

"He's so persistent," Rory grumbled. "I haven't seen him since August and he refuses to come home for Thanksgiving."

"He's got a point, though," Cecile reminded her. "You miss him, so you're blinded by the fact that he's got his own stuff and can't come home for a long weekend when it's so much easier to stay in Cali than be miserable."

"Miserable?"

"Yeah. Dude, I'm from Seattle and I'm not going home. Jet lag bites and it's really not worth it for a trip home when I'm not even going to enjoy it."

Rory sunk in her desk chair. "I guess it makes sense when you put it that way."

"You're lucky," Cecile added. "I'm not going to get to see my family until Christmas when you could probably road trip to Connecticut right now and spend the weekend."

"I guess that's true. Thanks." Rory rolled over on her bed. It was much later in Massachusetts than it was in California. She knew Jess had just left the radio station from the broadcast he did every week with his friend. Jess was making friends in California. When they both left home, Rory thought she could be the mature one when it came to being apart. She wasn't too sure about that anymore. It seemed like Jess had pulled a fast one on her. He was enjoying every aspect of being away from home. Jess wasn't the type to stay in one place for long and she had known this for a long time. In the back of her mind, she would never become an international reporter. Rory loved being home and close to home too much to leave for long periods of time.

Jess, on the other hand, often shared his desires to live in New York, Philadelphia, or even Italy. He longed for some semblance of freedom and independence, where she preferred to stay close. Harvard had treated her well over the past couple of months, but it was too far away from Connecticut to prevent homesickness.

"I get that you miss him, though," Cecile said.

"It's weird being so far apart," Rory said. "He was even accepted to Harvard but didn't have any interest in going here."

Cecile sat up on her bed. "Why not? It's Harvard."

"Yeah, that's what we said. I guess he just wanted to get away."

"Understood. I wanted to get away from home, too," Cecile said. "In a way," she added hastily. "It's hard."

"I think I'm going to call him," Rory said, picking up her cell phone. She hit the send button and listened to the phone ring three times before someone picked up.

"Jess Mariano's phone," a guy with a southern twang answered.

Rory paused. "Uh…is Jess around?"

"Yeah. Who's this?" he asked.

"Rory."

"Hang on." The noise in the background became muffled as the person who answered obviously covered the mouthpiece with his hand. "Yo, Jess. It's the girl again."

"Aw, Christ. I just talked to her about not coming home for Thanksgiving." A pause. "I told you not to answer it if Luke or Rory came up on the screen."

"Shit. Right."

Rory stared at the phone in disbelief as the call ended. "What?" she asked silently before shutting off the device and throwing herself on the bed.


	34. Hanging On The Telephone

See? I told you I would update a lot quicker this time. I really hit my groove this time around. Thanks for feeding into it. As I mention in the last chapter notes, I started a twitter for writing updates. If you click on the homepage link in my profile, it will bring you right to the page. You can ask me questions and I'll update on my story progressions. Always nice to have something to keep me motivated.

Thanks for all the reviews on chapter thirty-three: Mebabs, Amigo, lorlukealways, Maygen Lauren, mizskitles220, live4ska, smartbookworm, Curley-Q, frequentlydazzeledbylit, Jeremy Shane, Mallikad, Vera Cobb, kylielink, Hpluvr7, ShaolinQueen, and Tookie Clothespin.

Disclaimer: I still don't own a thing.

* * *

Her phone was sitting on her desk and she was waiting for it to ring. Again. It had been three days since she had heard from Jess. Three long, agonizing days. Her blood boiled from his remark that she had overheard.

"If you stare at that any longer, it's going to levitate."

"Hmm?" Rory turned around to face her roommate.

"I said: if you stare at that any longer, it's going to levitate."

"The phone?" Rory asked, pressing a button to make sure it hadn't turned off.

"Rory, he's a _boy_. And from what I understand, he's stubborn as all hell." Cecile plunked down across from Rory on her bed.

"Yeah, I guess so." She shuffled some papers on her desk. She knew that if Jess realized what he had done was wrong, he was going to act stubborn and guilty and avoid confrontation. Instead of agonizing over a phone call, she could be getting some work done before the holiday. As she tapped her ballpoint pen against her notebook, the phone starting ringing.

The only problem was that Jess wasn't the caller.

"Luke?" she answered questioningly.

"Rory, I've been trying to call Jess for the last three days."

"Oh. Okay," she said.

"All I want to know is that he's alive," he requested. It wasn't that he really wanted to talk to Jess. Having a conversation with him lately made him believe driving rusty nails into eyes would be more engaging.

"I haven't talked to him," Rory admitted, aware that wasn't the answer for which Luke was hoping.

"Then we'll have to deal with this the hard way," Luke said, hanging up the phone.

Rory raised her eyebrow as the call ended.

* * *

"KZSU 90.1 FM. I'm Jess and you're on the air."

"Jess Mariano!" the voice bellowed. The color drained from his face as he exchanged a glance with Patrick.

"Ride the Lightning," Jess countered quickly, taking his uncle off as a live call and quickly starting the song.

"Thanks for being discrete," Jess complained as the track starting playing through the speakers.

"Thanks for calling this past week," Luke retorted.

"I've been busy," Jess retaliated.

"Your phone is off."

"I know."

"Why's your phone off?" Luke demanded.

" 'Cause it is," Jess snapped.

Luke clenched his teeth. "We had a _deal_," he started. "You're across the fucking country and I don't hear from you in a week, Rory doesn't hear from you in a week, and when I get my hands on you, I swear to God, Jess."

Jess rolled his eyes as Patrick shot him another questioning look.

"Are you even listening to me?"

"Christ, yes! I'm always listening to you, and that's the problem!" Jess protested. "Stop smothering me! Stop talking down to me!"

"I'll talk to you however I damn well please," Luke shot back quickly. "You have a roof over your head and a college education because I look after you."

"If you're going to start on Thanksgiving now, can it," Jess requested crudely.

"I don't care about Thanksgiving!" Luke bellowed, scaring the crap out of Jess. It was Luke's way of snapping him back into shape.

He wasn't actually sure how to respond, causing silence on the line. Luke yelled. Luke yelled a lot, actually. But there were different ways he yelled and different ways Jess knew how to perceive them.

"Okay," he said finally, earning a frustrated sigh from his uncle.

"Is this seriously your biggest concern?" Luke asked, his voice much lower than when he started yelling.

"Yes!" Jess said, exasperated with the topic already.

"It was already dropped," Luke said.

"Okay!" Jess turned to the computer on his desk and double-clicked on the track list he was supposed to be following for that night.

"Then I don't see why it's still an issue."

"Well, it's obviously going to be an issue if I feel you and Rory are still badgering me about it. Christ, I'm not going to feel guilty about this."

You don't have to feel guilty about it," Luke reminded him, trying to remember why they were getting angry at each other in the first place. "And you should call Rory, if you haven't already."

The ending chords of "Ride the Lightening" faded out and Jess dropped the phone. It clunked to the floor as he switched songs on his playlist quickly without going live.

"Dropped the phone," mumbled. He did need to call Rory. He hadn't talked to her in a week either, mostly out of sheer embarrassment.

"Did you hear what I said?"

"Yes, Uncle Luke."

"And did you get your plane ticket yet?" Luke grilled.

"Yes, Uncle Luke," Jess said, rolling his eyes toward Patrick.

"Okay."

"Listen, I'm a little busy. Can we cut this short?" Jess asked, leaning forward in his chair. He was starting to antsy, and he also wanted to finish off the show so that he could get back to the rest of his to-do list.

"Call Rory."

"Bye, Luke."

"Call me," Luke reminded him.

Jess sighed and rolled his eyes again. "_Goodbye_, Luke." Jess clunked the receiver of the radio station phone back into the cradle and groaned audibly.

"Hot damn. What was that?" Patrick asked.

"Dysfunctional uncle."

* * *

"And because of that, I'm sorry," Jess ended apologetically. He waited for a response from Rory and paused. Maybe she had hung up on him halfway through his heartfelt apology. It wasn't often that he apologized, so he would have been surprised if she hadn't bothered to listen. "Are you still there?" he asked tentatively.

"Yeah, I'm still here," she finally said. His words were still gently settling in her mind. Jess was rash and quick to act on impulses that he shouldn't. He also had a guilty persona, as long as there was knowledge that he had deeply hurt someone.

"Well?" he asked, hoping for something more than a couple of words. That was all either of them had been exchanging lately, and that was rare when it came to Rory. She could usually get him to start talking, but it was hard for her to stifle what she was feeling.

"You're a petulant child sometimes, you know that?" she finally said.

Oomph. Not exactly the response he was expecting. "What?"

"You jump to conclusions far too quickly," she elaborated. "I wasn't even calling to coerce you to come home for Thanksgiving and neither was Luke. By that last conversation, I had accepted your reasons for staying put. If you had just answered the phone instead of making wild assumptions, this could have been cleared up much quicker."

"Yeah, I know," Jess mumbled. He had been rash and jumped to an unstable conclusion. "I'm sorry," he repeated, hoping it would stick this time. He was accustomed to being an asshole, and being apart from Rory had made him a little rougher around the edges and worse for wear.

"I know," she said swiftly. "But I miss you. If you had just been patient with me, I would have gotten the point."

"Yeah."

"Are we okay?" Rory asked tentatively.

"We're okay," Jess answered. "You know what this has made me realize?"

"What?"

"I hate long distance relationships."

Rory paused. This wasn't exactly the type of conversation she was excited to have. "Me too."

"So what does this mean?" he pressed, knowing full well neither of them was pleased with the topic at hand.

"It means we try harder," Rory said, an audible crack in her voice showing rearing its ugly head between words. "It's not the same as slamming the door and coming back later to sit on my doorstep at one in the morning."

Jess had almost forgotten about that incident. "Also means you can't camp out in the diner after storming downstairs," he reminded her.

"I'll see you in a couple of weeks," she mused. "That's something to look forward to."

"Crossing the days off my calendar," he admitted.

"Good." She opened her planner and scrawled a note in the box on the date he was arriving home. "I bought your Christmas present the other day," she mentioned offhand.

"You did?" he asked. Christmas had been filed to the back of his mind. Not only was there no time to shop around California, but it would be impossible to take a bunch of presents on a plane or check them in his luggage. The packing list of items to take home for the break was becoming so long it appeared he would probably need to remove some things to make space for necessities. "I haven't done anything."

"You would need a lot of suitcases," she said. Just go shopping when you get home. There's plenty of time."

"I was thinking of doing that," he said.

"It was great being able to talk to you tonight," Rory said. "I actually have a big paper that's due before Thanksgiving break, so I need to finish it soon."

"Okay, yeah. That's a good idea." Jess replied. "I'll talk to you later. Your turn to call me."

"I won't forget," she promised. "Hey, Jess?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

"Love you too, Rory."

* * *

She hoped Jess had remembered that they were meeting at baggage claim. Luke had drilled the day's plan into his nephew's head, but he was so thrilled to be back on the east coast that it kept going out the other ear. "I thought his plane already landed," Rory said, looking around in different directions.

"They're letting them off the plane now," Luke said. He turned back to the screen announcing aircraft arrivals and baggage assignments.

"How much stuff does he have?" Rory asked. She was sure his trusty duffel bag was filled to the brim with books and other necessities for the next month. Luke had stopped paying attention to her after they arrived at the airport. His mind seemed to be on other things and she just couldn't stop talking.

In the distance, she spotted an unruly young man with tanned skin and attractive dark hair. Exactly like in the movies, Rory broke into a dash and Jess dropped the carry on bag he had been holding. Catching her into a hug, Jess swung her gently and let her wrap her legs around him before finally setting her down. Luke had caught up with them by then and Jess allowed his uncle to pull him into a fatherly embrace.

"You're so tan!" Rory exclaimed, running her hand down his dark arm.

Jess shrugged. His olive skin had darkened considerably since being in the sun all the time in California. "It happens. There's a lot of sun in California." He turned to Luke briefly. "Thanks for coming to get me and bringing Rory."

"You're welcome," Luke said, fishing in his pocket for the parking ticket. He needed to pay for his spot and wanted to make sure he could locate the stub.

"You looked dressed for the weather," Rory commented, looking Jess over. He was wearing the trademark dark jeans with a blue button down, top two buttons undone, and his leather jacket. It had grown colder lately, with a thin blanket of snow covering the entire town. Rory was adjusted to the snow, ice, and coldness, but had yet to get used to Cambridge and Boston's snow becoming dirtier than the snow in Star's Hollow.

"Read the weather report," Jess mentioned with a smirk. "I also left Los Angeles at a nice 75 degrees this morning." Rory laughed, looking him over again. His smirk grew wider. "I changed on the plane."

"Smart," Rory remarked, grabbing his arm excitedly. "Come on, let's get home."


	35. Let It Snow

I was done with this chapter pretty quickly with the exception of one part. I'm trying to get stories written and posted even though I'm balancing seven college courses and my responsibility of secretary in the historical association. This chapter gets a little nostalgic, which is always good when Rory and Jess have been at each other's throats.

Thanks for the reviews on chapter thirty-four: ShaolinQueen, Just A Girl Of The Hollow x3, Maygen Lauren, mizskitles220, Jeremy Shane, kylielink, Music girl2121, Curley-Q, Hpluvr7, Tookie Clothespin, and DiehardJavaJunkie14.

Disclaimer: I still don't own anything.

* * *

Stars Hollow was in a bustle with the return of their two romanticized college residents. Jess had gone to the bookstore with Rory and discovered that everything was 30% off, just for them. Later that afternoon at Weston's, they were given free scones and cookies with their coffee. Jess realized that the crazy little town missed both of them in their own special ways. Taylor, of course, had tried to put an end to the town nursing Jess back into a cozy pattern and ensured that everything Jess used to swipe from his market was secure on a very high shelf.

The two sat eating burgers, fries, and onion rings while Luke wiped down the counter. Although they had only been home for three days, Rory and Jess had both settled back into the daily life of Stars Hollow. There was still a month for them to relax and reacquaint themselves with each other.

Jess dragged a French fry through a puddle of ketchup on his plate. He was still getting used to the chilly weather in Connecticut. He had been spoiled by the constant warm weather in California and had yet to adjust to the dropping temperatures back home. Although he had always been one to wear his leather jacket or a sweatshirt, the California heat had broken that habit after one too many ninety-degree days.

Outside, the snow was falling softly. The flakes were few and far between, but the snow was sticking to the ground. It was the perfect snow, and the first time Jess had gotten to see snow since he had left.

Rory took a long drink of Pepsi through her straw and put down her cheeseburger. "You look lost in thought," she said as Jess tore his eyes away from the flakes falling gently from the sky.

"It's just been a long couple of days," Jess said. "I'm tired. And three hours ahead of myself."

"Oh," Rory said plainly, picking up the burger again.

"Yeah. I got up early to help Luke down here and it felt like I was getting up at three in the morning." Jess leaned across the table and wiped the smudge of ketchup off Rory's upper lip with his napkin. "I didn't get to sleep until almost four this morning," he added.

"Oh, wow. That's late," she commented.

"It was almost one in the morning back in California," he continued. "That's a normal time to go to sleep."

"Either of you need a refill?" Luke asked, reaching to take his nephew's empty soda glass.

"It's okay. I'll get it," Jess said, taking his own glass behind the counter to the soda fountain.

"He's readjusting," Rory said as Luke glanced back at the counter. Jess had decided to check on the customer sitting on the last stool. He needed a soda refill as well.

"And being overly helpful," Luke said with a sigh. He shook his head and walked back in the direction of the counter where Jess was cleaning up the soda he had spilled on the counter.

Rory went back to her dinner as Luke and Jess argued over the soda and Luke pushed Jess in her direction so that his own dinner didn't get cold. "You know what's weird?" Jess asked as he sat back down.

"What?" Rory asked, finishing off the last bite of her cheeseburger.

"We missed the first snow," Jess said.

"Well, I didn't miss the first snow," Rory laughed. "The buses were running so late during that first storm. I think it was even heavier in Boston and Cambridge than it was here."

"I missed all the snow," Jess commented. "But what I meant is that we missed sneaking out during the first snow."

Rory lowered her head in the sorrow that she had nearly forgotten their tradition, especially after what had happened on the bridge last year. "That's right," she finally said.

"We're on the fifth snow, I think," Jess said, looking out the window. The snow had stopped falling momentarily, but it would probably pick up throughout the night.

"It's the fourth here. We had some flurries in Massachusetts before I left, but I came home to an empty sky."

"I don't know if I missed the snow," Jess said, turning in his seat to face the window. The snow was starting to blow in the direction of the diner and was sticking to the storefront. "I sure didn't miss the cold," he said.

"I noticed the consistent jacket wearing," Rory said. "I remember that you used to wear just a tattered sweatshirt in the winter half the time."

"I'm not used to it being cold yet."

"I can see that," Rory said.

Jess got up and lifted their plates. "Let's go upstairs before I help Luke close," he suggested.

"Sure. Need help with those?" Rory asked.

Luke swooped in quickly and plucked the Coke glasses off the table. "I've got everything," he said.

"You sure?" Jess asked, sliding the plates on the counter.

"Positive."

"Okay," Jess said. "If you need me, I'll be upstairs." He parted the curtain that blocked the staircase and motioned for Rory to go in front of him.

"You look like you're adjusting to home," Rory commented as she stepped into the apartment. On his bed was an unfolded lump of laundry, which, knowing Jess, could have been either clean or dirty.

He eyed her look knowing. "Yeah, I didn't really have any time to tidy up," he explained sheepishly.

"It looks like a category five storm rampaged through your room when we were downstairs eating."

"That's okay. You're used to it looking like a hurricane took a short cut through my room," he said with a laugh, bring his hand to meet her sweatshirt. Slyly, he pulled down the zipper and tossed the material to the side. "And you should see my dorm room," Jess protested, " there's nothing out of place."

"Right. Because it's all here," Rory shot back, "on your floor."

"Not true," Jess protested again.

"Yes, always true. You're like Pig Pen from the Peanuts comic strip."

"That's not fair," Jess said. "I don't smell nearly as bad." He lowered his voice to a huskier tone and grabbed Rory by the hand.

"All this and now you're trying to seduce me?"

"I was trying to seduce you before you told me I smell. Now I'm trying it again. Take it like a man, Gilmore," he joked, shoving the laundry off his bed before knocking her lightly against the bedspread.

She grinned up at him, a smirk forming on her own lips. "A man?" she laughed.

He slid on the bed close to her. "I missed this," he said, hand resting on her abdomen. It was the first time they had attempted anything physical since their vacation had started. There had been no time and they always seemed to be under a constant watch. Of course, this time was no different. The diner was slated to close within the next twenty minutes and, unless they moved quickly, there was always the risk of Luke rummaging around upstairs.

"I missed this, too," she said, shutting her eyes and leaning her head against his shoulder. His hand settled into the dip by her stomach and she sighed contentedly. There was nothing further and he accepted this fact. Tonight was their first real night alone and the only thing that was stopping it was…

The door to the apartment swung open forcefully as Luke, hands filled with paperwork and the cash drawer, smacked into it. "Everyone's clothes on?" he asked gruffly, back facing the two lovers.

"Buck naked," Jess said, smirking wildly.

"We're fully clothed, Luke," Rory reassured him. "Jess is just kidding."

* * *

Rory rubbed her eyes as she heard a snap outside. It took her a minute to realize it was probably something other than the snow and sat up in bed. Quickly, she pulled up her blinds. It was snowing heavily outside, but she could see Jess tossing small rocks at her window through the flakes. Bracing herself for the burst of cold, she opened the window. "What are you doing here?" she asked sleepily.

He was clad in the usual leather jacket, but a pair of black mittens and a matching scarf adorned his small frame. "Get dressed," he ordered, evading her original question.

"What are you doing here?" she asked again, shivering from the cold wind that was whipping through her open window.

"It's snowing," Jess said.

"Brilliant deduction. I can see that, Einstein." Rory folded her arms.

"Our anniversary…thing is tonight. Technically," Jess looked at his watch, "in twenty minutes. Get dressed," he ordered again.

She knew their anniversary "thing" was that day. There was a small wrapped gift under her bed next to the Christmas present box on the left. "I know."

"So, come on. Get dressed." He pulled a thermos of hot chocolate out of the knapsack that was slung over his shoulder. Because of the snow, Rory had failed to notice that it was hanging from his silhouette.

"Oh!" Rory squeaked, the realization finally hitting her. "I'll be right down," she said, shutting the window and closing the blinds.

A few minutes later, Rory scampered down the stairs wearing her winter jacket, a matching sparkly hat with a white pouf on top, and her snow boots.

Jess was not a romantic in any way, shape, or form, which actually wasn't all that surprising considering his demeanor. Rory had never mentioned their anniversary during their time apart or since they had arrived home for the holiday, which had been a week. She figured that if this was something important for Jess, he would remember on his own. Romantic or not, he did remember and a big part of Rory always knew he would.

They hadn't exactly been having "problems," but both Rory and Jess knew things were significantly different than last year or even the summer. Last winter they hadn't even figured out college business or even the end of high school business. They were completely different people than they were now. This year, they were more focused, more driven, and more in love than when they had started. Luke had once mentioned to Lorelai that he didn't recognize "where Jess ended and Rory began." They were still individuals, but so combined that tearing them apart was catastrophic.

Rory stopped in mid-step to rub her cold hands together.

"Cold?" Jess asked, stopping alongside his girlfriend.

Rory cracked a smile. "Every year."

"Well, if you need my jacket…"

"I have a nice, heavy one of my own," Rory said. "You're the one who is going to be cold this year, mister."

After settling down at their special spot on the bridge, Jess pulled the two thermoses of hot chocolate out of his knapsack.

"Even made raspberry hot chocolate," he said before Rory could unscrew the top from her thermos.

"I never thought you to be nostalgic," she mused, unscrewing the stopper from the thermos of hot chocolate.

"Romantic, not nostalgic," Jess corrected her.

"Never thought you to be that either," she said. Rory took a long drink of the raspberry hot chocolate and screwed the cap back on the thermos. "This is nice," she said.

"It looks the same every year," Jess pointed out.

"But it's different this year," Rory said as she watched the snowflakes fall to the frozen water.

"Different how?" Jess asked. He knew their tradition had never been to admire the beauty of Stars Hollow in the snow, even if it did look like a Christmas card in this weather.

Rory shrugged while fidgeting with the cap of her thermos. "I don't know. Just different. Maybe because it isn't the first snow or because this is our anniversary…thing."

"Maybe," Jess replied, pulling Rory closer to him. She leaned against his snow covered leather jacket and murmured a sigh of satisfaction. Smiling, Jess tipped up her chin and planted a kiss on her chilled lips.

They had always held this tradition, but it was different this year. This year, it was just a matter of sneaking out after the entire town had gone to sleep. It was just the two of them, huddled on the bridge during the fifth snowstorm with a thermos of hot chocolate.


	36. Winter Break

This chapter has been a long time coming for two reasons: One, because I wasn't sure anyone was actually interested in the story anymore and two, because I've been more immersed in original fiction lately. I hope there are still readers out there that will enjoy this. I have a couple more chapters that are almost ready to post because I just need to edit them. Look for more in the coming weeks. I'm dead set on finishing Diamonds and Rust and I'm actually writing the last chapter right now.

Disclaimer: After all this time, I still haven't inherited the rights to Gilmore Girls. Sad, I know.

* * *

The stacks of presents that had previously lined the tree had been unwrapped and Rory was leaning against the wall with a mug of coffee in her hands. Luke was tending to Christmas dinner while Jess attempted to assist in as many ways possible. Lorelai had been forced to the elder Gilmore's mansion to entertain her parents for Christmas. Though she had not been pleased Rory had avoided the invitation, Lorelai had gone in a pretty red dress with threats that her daughter would pay.

It was a small Christmas dinner, just enough food for the four of them. Luke had promised Lorelai that he would hold off on serving dinner until she had arrived back from the torturous event in Hartford. Jess closed the oven with a slam after checking on the chicken.

"Are you hungry?" he asked, turning toward Rory. "Stupid question," he corrected himself. "You're always hungry." Jess finished arranging the appetizer plate that Luke had abandoned and set it on the table. "May as well eat something now," he said.

Rory smiled and left her place on the floor. She handed Jess her empty coffee mug. "Please sir, can I have some more?" she asked, throwing in a bad accent.

Jess rolled his eyes and whisked the cup away for a refill. Rory was already picking through the cheese and crackers Luke had set to one side of the plate when he had started to put food out. "When is Lorelai due back from the torture chamber?" he asked, handing her a full cup of coffee.

Rory blew at the steam rising from the hot liquid before taking a seat at the kitchen table. "I don't know. She was hoping to leave in time to eat here. Even though Luke promised to hold dinner for her, he isn't going to wait all night for her to drive back from Hartford."

"Okay," Jess said. "Just wondering." He sat down next to her and dragged a celery stick through the vegetable dip sitting in the bowl in the center of the plate. After studying his girlfriend for a moment, his eyes floated down to her neck. "You're wearing it already."

"Huh?" Rory asked, finishing the cracker that was in her mouth.

"The necklace," he said. "You're wearing it already."

"Of course I am," she said, smiling. "I already told you I love it."

The silver chain around her neck held a pendant with a shining opal in the setting. Rory had never owned anything with an opal in it, even though she knew opals were the birthstone for October. Her mother had always settled on simpler jewelry, jewelry she could afford. Rory wasn't even sure how Jess had gotten the money to pay for what she took to be an expensive gift. In addition to the necklace, he had purchased a fancy journal and pen set for her writing. As usual, Rory had picked subtle hints from their phone conversations and had come back to Connecticut with a few books, movies, and CDs Jess had mentioned. He had not expected any of the mentions to have made their way into wrapped boxes under the Christmas tree, but he had dutifully opened each and every one of the presents encased in shining paper and bows.

"I just wanted to make sure you liked it," Jess said. "It wouldn't be worth it to me in the long run if that necklace was shoved into a jewelry box some place in your room."

Rory fidgeted with a piece of cheese. Jess had purchased jewelry for her before, but since she didn't constantly wear it, he had wrongly assumed she didn't like it after seeing it in her jewelry box. "I'm not going to wear it all the time," she explained. "If I wear it all the time, it's going break."

"It isn't going to break."

Rory shrugged. "I'm going to wear it," she convinced him. "I really love it. Thank you." Leaning over, Rory planted a kiss on his cheek.

Luke rounded the kitchen table and opened the oven so he could check on the chicken again. "Your mother better plan her escape soon," he told Rory, closing the oven gently. "If I cook this any longer it's going to dry out. Then I have to listen to her complaining about how bad my cooking is outside the diner."

Jess laughed, failing at his attempt to cover the obvious humor with a cough. Luke reeled around to shoot his nephew a murderous glace. "Sorry," he said quickly, ducking before Luke could ruffle his hair.

Rory's phone buzzed with a text message from her mother. "She's just trying to find a parking space," she reported, texting back that they had yet to eat.

"I'll go unlock the door for her," Jess volunteered, pushing his chair away from the table.

Nibbling on a piece of cheese, Rory exchanged a glance with Luke. He was about to pull the chicken out of the oven so that he could carve it as Lorelai made her way upstairs.

"Offspring!" Lorelai cried, her heels clanking noisily against the floor as she ran over to hug her daughter. "It was horrible!"

Rolling her eyes, Rory patted her mother on the shoulder. "It couldn't have been that bad."

"It's the Gilmores," she reminded her daughter. "It's always bad, but the holidays made them worse."

Luke cleared his throat as he set a plate of chicken on the table. He had been carving it while Lorelai was complaining about her parents. "Can't you just eat now and moan about your parents later?"

She stuck her tongue out at Luke before sitting down next to Rory. Before she had arrived, Jess had set the table with all the necessary utensils. Luke stuck a large serving fork into a piece of chicken and served Jess before passing the plate around the table.

"Merry Christmas," Rory added with a smile, hoping to lighten the mood.

"And to all a good night?" Jess asked, glancing over at her.

* * *

The worst part about winter break was knowing the end was near. Jess had a week left before he needed to board a plane to California and Rory was heading back to Harvard shortly after Jess left. They had tried planning and setting time aside, but it seemed there wasn't anything other than simple company that would hold their attention. This brought them upstairs over the diner.

It was on the slow side so Luke kept coming upstairs to find miscellaneous things and attempt paperwork, which meant even making out was out of the question.

"We have five more days," Jess reminded Rory as they sat on his bed reading.

"I know," she said sadly, not bothering to look over her copy of _Oliver_ _Twist._

"We did okay last time," Jess added. "It's just three months." He tried to remember the page number and then shut his own copy of _Oliver Twist_. "I know three months sounds like a long time, but look at how well we did the last time we were away."

"I didn't realize that long distance arguments were a good thing," Rory reminded him, tossing her book next to his.

"You mean the misunderstanding we had about Thanksgiving?" he corrected.

"No. The full-blown fight where you wouldn't even talk to me for days," she said.

Great. An argument was not exactly what Jess had planned for the evening. It was hard enough to leave when they were on good terms.

Rory had the exact same feeling as she jumped back on her words. "I was hoping our last days together could be nice," she said quickly.

"No fighting then," Jess said. "I don't want to get on a plane when we're mad at each other."

"Okay," she said.

"We've had a good break," Jess said. "It was great being together, but long distance is going to be a reality for us now."

Four years was a long time to be apart like that, but Rory held her tongue.

"Plus, California is a good place to spend spring break from what I hear," Jess continued. "For one, it's actually warm in the spring."

"Our spring breaks don't actually line up," Rory noted sadly. It was one of the first things they had looked for on the academic calendars.

"No, but don't you realize how good that actually is?" Jess asked. "You spend your spring break with me and I spend my spring break with you."

She perked up at the thought. "You're saying that- "

"You come to California and I'll go to Boston."

"You think that will work out?" Rory asked.

"Why not? I already talked to Luke about it. He's not exactly pleased that I wouldn't be staying home for my spring break and then taking off to see you during your spring break, but I promised I'd spend the first weekend here before taking off to Boston. He's going to get me at the airport, so it's the least I can do."

"When were you going to tell me this?" Rory asked.

"When Luke talked to Lorelai about it," he admitted. "It isn't a hundred percent until she says yes and I didn't want to get your hopes up."

"She won't say no," Rory promised. "She knows how far apart January and May are."

"But she's your mom and you've never traveled by yourself before," he reasoned.

"Have so," she argued. "Washington D.C.?"

"I said by yourself, not without her. That was a student council thing," Jess reminded her.

"Right." Rory smiled and picked her book up as the door swung open.

"We're behaving," Jess teased as Luke eyed them suspiciously.

Shaking his head, Luke grabbed a roll of register tape from his desk and went back downstairs.

* * *

Jess had learned that goodbyes were always the hardest part of being the first to leave. He stood with Luke and Rory as he waited for his plane at the gate. His bags had already been checked and his carry-on held two books, some music, and a couple of snacks. It was going to be a long trip and he anticipated sleeping for the majority of the ride. Rory had started saying goodbye to him twenty minutes before they had even arrived at the airport. It took them so long to depart that they needed to start early or they would be rushing to kiss and say goodbye one last time before Jess boarded his plane.

The announcement was scratchy over the loud speakers, but Jess knew it was coming before the speakers erupted with his gate number.

"Call me when you touch ground," Luke insisted, hoping it wouldn't be too late when his nephew's layover plane arrived in Cleveland. They weren't lucky enough to book a straight shot and Luke knew Jess would probably be stuck in Ohio for at least an hour and a half.

"I will," Jess promised, slinging his carry-on bag over his shoulder. Facing Rory, he could tell tears were stinging in her eyes. "I'll call you too," he promised, knowing this one was more sincere than the last. He held his tearful girlfriend close before placing a tender kiss on her lips.

"I love you," she said, hanging on to his hand.

"I have to go," he whispered, looking ahead the gate.

She hung her head. "I know."

Luke and Rory waited until they saw the plane take flight before leaving the airport. She was silent during the ride home, but Luke understood. Aimlessly, Rory was playing with a necklace that Jess had given her. Even though she wasn't a firm believer in constant jewelry wearing, the pendant hadn't left her neck other than the times it rested on the counter during her shower.

"Are you ready to go back to Harvard?" Luke asked as they pulled in front of the diner.

Rory shook her head. "I really just wanted winter break to be longer," she said. Dragging her feet through the snow, she followed Luke into the diner in the hopes of a burger and coffee in which to drown her sorrows.


	37. Disintegration

New chapter! How exciting! Diamonds and Rust is approaching the end, which is scary. I'll try to have another chapter up within the next week. Happy reading, and keep those reviews coming. I love to see who's reading, and I'll usually respond to the reviews.

Disclaimer: Still not mine. How terrible.

* * *

It had been a typical Friday night for Jess. His classes ended on the early side at two-thirty in the afternoon and he didn't have to report to his work-study job at the library until four. Before he needed to report across campus, he grabbed a bite to eat and read a couple of sections in his biology textbook. After working in the library for his typical shift of three hours, Jess headed back to his empty dorm room to drop off his things. After class and work, he would place the obligatory calls to both Luke and Rory before taking off somewhere with Patrick. The weather was always warm, so they had their pick of activities after dark without the annoyance of wind chill in February.

By nine-thirty, Jess and Patrick were sitting in the radio station with two other friends mulling over pizza menus and trying to figure out which party they wanted to attend that night. They always had their pick, of course, being sufficiently well known outside the radio station. Jess definitely thought he had started college off on the right foot.

Every other day, Jess would study and work hard on his assignments, with the exception of the days he spent in the radio station. Even during some of their shows, Jess and Patrick would work on corresponding assignments together. They both fell into the same major and tried to pick classes together so they would be able to help each other. Jess was smart in his own right and had worked on the newspaper at Chilton, so he knew more about editing and publication than Patrick.

"They have the best beer," Patrick said pointing to one of the addresses. "And they have the best girls," he said, pointing to another slip of paper.

"Let's just go to a couple," Bill said with a shrug. "The night is young, men."

* * *

"So what did you do last night?" Rory asked. Her Friday nights were always simple. She rarely ever socialized with Cecile, but they would occasionally walk through Harvard Square or take the red line into Davis Square or miscellaneous destinations in Boston. Aware that Jess was actually big into the social scene in California, Rory always lived vicariously through her boyfriend.

"Got some pizza with friends and then we bounced from party to party trying to find one that was interesting."

"Drinking?" she asked. Rory wasn't blind to Jess and how he was in a social scene, after all, he had been mixed into the "bad" crowd of Chilton. There had been plenty of times when he had gotten in trouble with Luke for drinking and smoking.

"Yeah, drinking," Jess said, anxious to change the subject. They were in college after all. He had always figured he would have the freedom to do whatever he wanted once he had gotten away from the confines of Stars Hollow. "Did you get anything in the mail?" he asked.

"I didn't check," she admitted. "Why?"

"Happy Valentines Day?" he asked, hoping she would have at least remembered so she could check for his present. The holiday itself didn't hold his interest, but his girlfriend would definitely appreciate that he had remembered it.

"That's right!" she exclaimed. "Jess, I'm so sorry I forgot. I've been so busy with schoolwork I didn't even think about it."

"Hey, it's okay," he consoled. "It's not a big deal. I just thought it would be a nice surprise."

"No, it would have been," Rory said. "I wish I thought to look. I'm sorry," she apologized again.

She really had been busy with schoolwork. Rory didn't want to admit it to Jess, but she was having a fairly difficult time with two of her six classes. It wasn't exactly her choice to take six classes, but she was trying to keep up with the other brains she had for friends around campus. It seemed measly to take just the minimum requirement as she had done last semester to ease herself in to the college lifestyle.

Jess was also taking six classes. Rory had counted when he listed off his schedule for her when she was jotting it down on her white board where she kept important dates and assignments. Right now, his schedule was squeezed on a post-it note and stuck underneath the white board because she needed the room for all her assignments and the corresponding due dates of the assignments.

There was a lot of pressure for Rory to keep her scholarship. She didn't want to tell her mother that she was doing poorly in anything and she didn't want to let Jess know she was worried about failing any of classes. Rory Gilmore didn't fail anything. Rory Gilmore was valedictorian of one of the toughest private schools on the east coast.

"You sound stressed," Jess said. "Are you doing okay?"

"Me? Yeah, I'm fine. I was just doing a paper for my government class," she said. The paper was supposed to be ten pages long and Rory had already stopped on page five, unsure what else to add.

"Yeah. I have something due for biology on Monday that I should probably start," Jess said. He had a huge lab report due that he had left for the last minute.

"Maybe I should let you get off the phone so you can work on that," she hinted, actually hoping for more time to cut down on her own assignments.

"It isn't a big deal," Jess said. "I'm already getting an A in the class based on previous tests. I can put this off a little longer. Besides, Pat and I are going out with some friends tonight."

Again. He was going out _again._ Rory had no idea how Jess was getting all his work done when all he did was party with friends, run his radio show, and work at the library. There were not possibly enough hours in the day for him to get everything done. She had originally reasoned that his work was not as tough. After all, this was Harvard and he wasn't attending Harvard. By nature, Harvard was supposed to be the harder school with more challenging classes. She could have held on to that notion until she realized that she was taking one of the same classes Jess was taking, same textbook and all. He had read her a strange passage from the journalism book that he was using in class and Rory had remembered reading it just the night before.

"Well, I should get going anyway," Rory said. "I'll check the mail tomorrow," she promised, pulling another textbook from her pile of work she needed to complete. The government paper had been stumping her for nearly an hour and she thought it might be nice to have a clean slate.

"Uh, okay," Jess said, shrugging off her hasty goodbye. "I love you."

"Love you."

She stared the chemistry textbook before flipping to the correct pages she needed to read before Monday. Chilton had taught basic and intermediate chemistry and it had been enough to allow her to test out of the basic course. Intermediate chemistry, which she needed for her lab requirements, was a much harder, more intense course and Rory had no idea what her professor was lecturing about half the time. She had done much better in chemistry in high school than she was doing right now. Half of her wanted to curl up in bed because she had granted herself such an inadequate time to sleep that her body was craving the rest. Finally giving in to her exhaustion, Rory slid under her warm blankets and clutched her teddy bear before falling asleep.

Rory checked her school mailbox the next day to find a Valentine's themed bear and a huge box of chocolates. The package was so big that she needed to fetch it from where they were keeping it at the front desk when she handed them her package slip. Coming from Jess, it was a sweet remembrance of a holiday she had forgotten. Rory wondered if she should have thought to get him a card, but she realized the day wasn't as significant to Jess and he had only remembered because of her. She set the box of chocolates on her desk and picked through them as she tried to work on her unrelenting government paper.

By the end of the next week, Rory was completely ready to check out of school and leave. Nothing was working out for her in the education department and she was sick of doing piles of work every night. The government paper she had slaved over the previous week was granted a mediocre C+, a grade Rory despised more than the actual class. She packed the necessary essentials and took the train to South Station, desperate for a Greyhound bus that would take her back to Connecticut for the weekend. She didn't want her mother to know that she was heading back home so soon.

While Lorelai missed her daughter, she wanted her to have an enriched college experience with plenty of studying and plenty of free time. She also wanted the studying and free time to occur on campus rather than at home. Rory needed to adjust to time away from home and that was the only way to enforce it.

At this point, it didn't matter what Lorelai wanted her to do. Rory needed her own bed in her own house for a change. It had been a month since she had been in Connecticut and she missed everything, especially coffee at Luke's.

"What are you doing home?" Lorelai asked as she looked up from the couch when Rory hauled her things through the door of the Crapshack later that evening.

"I just needed home," Rory said, dropping her bags. She could feel tears welling up in her eyes already, but she didn't want to cry.

Lorelai knew her daughter all too well. "What's going on?" she demanded softly, shutting the front door. "You never take the bus home from Harvard on a Friday night just because you miss being home."

"Well, I do now," Rory said, picking her bags off the floor.

She wanted an explanation before Rory was going to get off that easy. "Not so fast, miss," she said, playing the mother card.

Rory whirled around quickly. "What?"

"What are you doing home?"

Her chin quivered a bit before she could hide it. Mom still knew everything. "It's horrible," she said, tears stinging her eyes again. "I hate it there. I just wanted to come home."

Lorelai hugged her daughter close as the backpack Rory was holding hit the ground again. "Hey, it's okay," she promised. "Let's just sit down and talk about this."

"In the morning?" Rory pleaded, pulling her tear stained face off Lorelai's shoulder. All she wanted right now was to sleep.

"Okay. In the morning," Lorelai agreed, planting a kiss on the top of Rory's head.

* * *

"It was the worst conversation I've ever had with her," Lorelai said as Luke refilled her coffee cup.

"Jess didn't mention that Rory was having trouble in school," Luke said. He replaced the coffee pot on the hot plate and turned back to face Lorelai.

"Well, that's the problem. Until she came rushing home like this, I had no idea she was having trouble in school either. Rory never has trouble with school. I figured she was a little down because she missed Jess."

"What now?" Luke asked.

"I drove her back this morning. I didn't want her back on a bus like that for the second time this weekend. She was already upset, so I figured the best thing to do was give her a ride. She didn't want me to leave."

"Doesn't she have classes in the morning, though?" Luke asked. "It wasn't exactly an option for you to stay."

"I know. She was already agonizing over all the work she had due tomorrow. I told her to drop a class so she could lighten her load a bit. She said she was supposed to be taking six classes at this point."

"She's being too ambitious," Luke said.

"I thought Jess was taking a long list of classes this semester," Lorelai said.

"Yeah, he has quite a bit of work to do. I didn't realize he had enough hours in a day to get everything done."

"So maybe he's just been able to manage his time a little better. Do you think she's talked to him?"

"I don't know," Luke said. "Jess calls me every Friday and hasn't mentioned anything about Rory since he arrived there."

Lorelai propped her face up with her hand. "Do you think something happened between them and neither of them said anything?"

"I don't think so. That's not like either of them."

"Right."

"Do you think I should have Jess talk to Rory?" he asked.

Lorelai sighed. "I don't know. If she didn't talk to Jess then I don't want to intrude. Then she would know I talked to you and you talked to Jess. It feels wrong."

"I suppose," Luke relented.

"I just don't want her to stretch herself too thin, but I don't know if I should interfere."

"She's new at this. Maybe you just need to give her some time," Luke said, turning to help another customer.

"Okay. Maybe," Lorelai said reluctantly, glancing at her reflection in the coffee.


	38. Spring Break Part 1

Whew. I know this has been a long time coming. I promise I'm not losing interest in this story. I very much want to finish it, especially since there are only a couple more chapters to post. With that said, I want to make a short announcement that ends with a question for all of you.

I've been writing this story since 2007, which to me is a crazy long time. I actually got into Gilmore Girls fanfiction when my mom was in the hospital because it kept me busy. From the start, I knew what was going to happen in Diamonds and Rust. Now that it's coming to end, I want to know if the sequel should see the light of day. Diamonds and Rust was always supposed to be a two-part story. The sequel has already been mapped out. The only thing is, now that I've been writing mostly original fiction, I don't know if I should spend my time on the sequel if no one is going to read it. Would you like to see and read a sequel?

Thank you for the reviews so far. Keep them coming so I know if there is anyone out there reading.

Disclaimer: I still don't own anything pertaining to Gilmore Girls, but I do own the full series!

* * *

For the last month, Rory had come to terms with the need to drop a class. Her workload was still substantial, but there was less pressure hanging over her head. Most nights, she was able to get a decent amount of sleep before going to classes. Spring break neared closer and closer, which gave her something to work toward. For the most part, seeing Jess was the most eventful part of her agenda.

"Three more days until you get on a plane," Jess said when Rory picked up her cell phone.

She smiled over the last assignment she had due before spring break officially began. Things were finally loosening up for her now the semester was in full swing and vacation was in view. "I know."

"Are you packed?" he asked.

Rory glanced over at the pile of clothing that was stacked on her dresser. "I started packing," she said. "I tried to bring enough shorts from the last time I was home."

"It's eighty degrees," Jess added. "I would still pack something just in case it gets cool at night. It doesn't happen often, but it does sometimes."

"Okay." She turned briefly back to her work before filing it away and flinging herself on the bed. "What are you doing?" she asked. She needed a break from work and Jess had a more interesting life at this point. She liked being filled in on the radio show and his friends and classes.

"Not much," he said. "I'm trying to get some long term assignments done so I can actually spend time with you this week."

"Lots of work?" she asked.

"A ton." Jess was finally taking his own break before dashing off to a study group for his biology class. "Most of it is reading, so it's not too bad. A couple of papers. I'm technically taking mid-terms this week." His biology exam was tomorrow, hence the study session with some members of the class.

"Should I let you go?" she asked, knowing she had to get back to work soon.

"No, it's okay," he said. "Maybe five more minutes. I have to go to a study group soon."

"Well, I have to get back to my work anyway," Rory said.

"Okay. Then I'll talk to you later and I'll see you in three days."

Rory flipped down her phone and smiled. "Three days," she said softly, grinning harder.

* * *

Jess had taken a taxi to the airport to get Rory when her plane landed. He had ventured down to the baggage claim to wait for her duffle bag to make its way around baggage claim and for her to emerge.

When she spotted Jess, Rory broke into a run and Jess accepted her into his arms. "Hey," he said, spinning her gently. "I missed you."

She buried her head in his shirt and hugged him harder. "I missed you so much." The baggage started to filter into the claim and Rory dragged Jess to find her belongings.

"You're going to be warm in those jeans," Jess said, pointing at her pants.

"I know," she said. "I have other things to change into. It was just too cramped on the plane and I didn't want to take my shoes off in the bathroom."

"Okay." He nodded and accepted her coat as she handed it to him. Everyone around them would have been able to tell Rory was coming from somewhere cold with that jacket.

"I see my bag," she said, going over to grab her oversized duffle bag from the baggage conveyer before it passed. "Where are we going from here?"

"I just need to grab a taxi for us and we can go back to my place. I mentioned before that both of my roommates moved out for this semester, so we actually have the whole room to ourselves."

"Is there anywhere we can get some coffee?" Rory asked. Her plane ride had been a long, uncomfortable one and she was exhausted. All she really wanted right now was a nice cup of coffee and some snuggling time with her boyfriend.

"We can get coffee," Jess said. "I figured you would want some after being on the plane for that long."

"Yeah. I think I know what you mean when you were talking about that jet lag earlier," she mentioned. "It's so weird to feel like I actually lost part of a day."

"I know. Don't worry. You'll get used to it and then you'll feel fine."

"Then I'll have to readjust when I get back home," she said.

"Right. That's why it's such a pain to go home for two or three days at a time. I need at least the first and last day to get my internal clock in working order."

"Yeah. It makes sense."

"So, taxi and coffee. Anything else you desire?" Jess asked.

"No. Just you. I think I have everything I need right now."

* * *

Because of Luke's insistent checking and the fact that Lorelai always seemed to be home when they were in the mood, Jess and Rory had only had sex twice during their winter break. It wasn't that they wanted to only have sex those two times, it was just that the time wasn't there. The two of them were curled up in Jess's twin size bed half asleep when he inched his hand down her side.

"Hey," she mumbled, swatting his hand away.

"Hey what?" he asked.

"I just want to do this right now," she said.

Jess nodded and pulled her closer. "Okay. We can do this for now."

"Maybe we can go out later?" she asked.

"Sure." Jess untangled himself from Rory and pulled the covers off them.

"Hey," she protested.

Jess rubbed her shoulders as he rested against the wall. "I'm tired, Rory. It's late. I know you have jet lag, but it's almost five in the morning."

Her nap had thrown off her internal clock more than she had realized. "Where are you going?" Rory asked.

"Jetlag may have you energized, but it _is_ still five in the morning," he reminded her. "I have class in a couple of hours and that little nap didn't cut it for me."

"Oh, sorry," Rory "apologized.

"It's okay," he said. "I just can't slack off this week."

"I understand," Rory said. "Get ready for bed and I'll grab my stuff so I can crawl in with you."

"Think we can do a night together in the twin bed?" he asked.

"Sure, why not? We did it at home and we just took a nap in that bed."

"Yeah, but not for a full night."

"This thing isn't that small," she reasoned. "Plus, you have to get up in a couple of hours anyway."

"True."

"And there's another bed over there if either of us get uncomfortable," she reminded him. Jess hadn't been exactly sure what to do about their sleeping arrangements, but he didn't know how it would be sharing the small bed.

"Yeah, makes sense," he said. "It's late, so you should come to the bathroom with me. They're stalls and we have multiple sinks."

Rory started rifling through the duffle bag for her toothbrush and toothpaste. "Do you have class early tomorrow?"

"Nah. I have class at nine-thirty."

She located the toothbrush and stood up straight. "I guess that isn't too early. At least you don't have class at eight."

"I'll put off getting up as long as possible," he said, grabbing the room key off his desk. "I don't smell, do I?"

Rory laughed. "What do you mean?"

"I just don't feel like taking a shower. I'm too tired. Do I smell bad?"

She laughed again and hugged him from behind. "I think you smell good. You always smell good."

"You're biased."

"Yeah."

Jess grabbed her hand and they went down the hallway to the bathroom.

* * *

When Rory woke up the next morning, she was groggy and still tired. She fumbled for the alarm clock on the dresser that was next to the bed. It was ten o'clock but it felt much later. Jess had obviously already left for class, she thought, noting his absence. There was a piece of paper tucked by the alarm clock that fluttered to the floor as she moved it. Leaning over the side of the bed, Rory grabbed the paper and opened it at the fold. His hurried scrawl was dashed across the page with his name signed with a flourish at the bottom.

_Didn't want to wake you before class. There's milk in the fridge and bagels somewhere in the top drawer. Help yourself. I'll bring back some coffee around eleven-thirty when I get out of class. I love you._

Rory sighed and filed the note under the alarm clock. She was hungry, but not in the mood for a bagel. After rummaging through the top drawer of food, she uncovered Jess's secret junk food stash and pulled out a bag of sour cream and onion potato chips.

When Jess returned closer to noon than eleven-thirty, he found Rory asleep across his bed again, the chips abandoned and her thumb stuck between the pages of her book. He had two coffees in hand but was hesitant to wake her. In typical Rory fashion, she smelled coffee and looked up at Jess.

"Coffee?" she asked with a smile. This was exactly what Jess missed.

He nodded and handed her the to-go cup and sat on the bed next to her. His hair was slicked back, but still curly, and he smelled faintly of deodorant body spray.

"How was class?" she asked, hesitantly sipping at the steaming coffee.

"It was good," he said indifferently, breaking the tab on his own coffee cup. "Writing for International Relations."

Rory was taking a similar class at Harvard, and it was one of the tougher classes that she had been bemoaning all semester. She hated that the one thing she had wanted to do for her entire life was annoying her. "That's good."

"I have class again at three-thirty, but I'm free until then," Jess said, trying to change the subject as he sensed her apprehension for the discussion about his class.

"Do you want to do anything?" she asked.

"Well, I was thinking we could get some lunch. I'm sure you're hungry. If you want, I can sneak you into the bathroom and you can take a shower."

Rory made a face. "Is there a women's bathroom that I can sneak into?"

Laughing, Jess set his coffee on the desk. "Sure. I think I might be able to arrange that."

She grinned up at him. "Shower and then lunch? Maybe you can show me around a little."

Jess found the bathroom for Rory and looked over his work while she was in the shower. It was going to be a long, stressful week for him regarding schoolwork and he was almost wishing that he hadn't invited Rory to come to California knowing that he was still going to have to attend classes and do homework. In all actuality, it would have been better if their spring breaks had fallen on the same week instead of the way it was happening.

He had propped the door open with the lock flipped up and didn't hear Rory sneak back into his room. She had brought her clothes with her to change so that she didn't have to come upstairs in just a towel. "You okay?" she asked. "You look stressed."

Jess sighed and dropped the pencil against his notebook. "I have a lot of work to do before class starts. That's all."

"Your class this afternoon?" she asked.

"Yeah. That one."

Rory nodded and slung the towel over the bar in the closet where Jess kept his shower things. "I brought a book. You can work."

"But I promised you lunch," he said.

"And you brought me coffee," she said. "You have things to work on. We can always eat later. As long as I have coffee and a book, I'll be good."

"Okay," Jess consented. "Then I'm going to run over to the library and then go to class."

Rory's head snapped up in his direction. "Wait, you're going to the library?"

"Yeah. I have to work on a research paper."

"Oh."

"I won't be long," he promised. "Remember, we'll have dinner together tonight. There's a Mexican place down the road. We can do that and have quesadillas later."

Sighing, Rory turned back to her bag to dig out her books. "Okay." As she sat on the bed, she watched Jess gather his things and get ready to leave. She was still feeling a little tired, probably due to both the jet lag and lack of sleep from studying so much, and figured that another nap after reading a couple chapters couldn't hurt.

Jess departed for the library and left Rory by herself to read. After reading a couple of chapters, as she promised herself, Rory snuggled under the covers for what she hoped would be a brief nap.

When she woke up, it was almost six at night.

And Jess wasn't back yet.


	39. Spring Break Part 2

I was astounded by the quick response to the last chapter, especially to my question of a sequel. I'm thrilled that it's wanted. I have already starting writing it, so chapters will be posted after Diamonds and Rust is wrapped up.

Thank you for all the reviews! They make me write, edit, and post faster. I couldn't wait to get this chapter up, so this is for all of you. The story is coming to an end with just one full chapter left to be posted, so keep the reviews coming. I love to know who is reading. I actually wanted to post this for the last two days, but the first night we didn't have internet and last night I couldn't get the document to upload. Rest assured, this will be my updating speed as long as there are readers!

I got all sappy when I finished writing the last chapter today. My favorite part to write and reread, by far, was the graduation scene where Jess carves their initials into the Chilton woodwork. I have missed writing Chilton Jess. What has been your favorite part so far? I would love to know as I reminisce and write the epilogue.

Disclaimer: Nope. Not mine. But boy, can I dream…

* * *

"I thought you said you would be back after class," Rory said, trying not to start a fight on the first full day of her vacation with Jess. It wasn't his vacation. She knew he still had work to do while she visited.

Sighing, Jess tossed his book bag to the side and pulled out his desk chair. "I have a lot to do, okay?" he said.

"Well, that doesn't mean you should get mad at me," Rory shot back. "You're the one who invited me here in the first place. You should have known ahead of time that you would be gone all day."

"You have no right to get mad at me either," Jess snapped.

Rory shook her head. "Forget it. You want to get stuff done, go get stuff done. I'm not going to stop you from doing work; all I want is for you to tell me when you're going to be gone. I understand you have a lot of homework, but you said you were going to be back after class and you didn't get back here until seven o'clock at night."

Jess scowled. "Maybe you shouldn't have come then."

Not exactly the reaction Rory had planned on. "What?"

"If you're upset that I'm not going to be able to spend time as much time with you this week, then maybe you should have just stayed home."

Rory wasn't sure how she would get back into his room, but she really wanted to storm out and come back later. She didn't have a key, and there was nowhere for her to go while they cooled off from the impending argument. "What do you have to do now?" she asked.

"I was going to ask if you were in the mood for dinner, but then this happened."

Rory sunk down in her seat. Jess always had the upper hand and the means to make her feel like the bad guy. "Dinner would be good," she said softly, hoping he would apologize for something before moving on to what was next.

"Okay. Then we'll get dinner. What do you want?"

She could still tell he was mad, but she didn't want to bring up in the conversation. "I thought you said something about Mexican food earlier," she reminded him.

"Okay, we'll get Mexican then." He still sounded pissed off and Rory wasn't too pleased about it.

"Is there something else bothering you?" she asked. "Would it kill you to at least be happy that I'm here?"

"I'm happy you're here!" Jess yelled.

"What a vote of confidence," Rory said, throwing her book in her duffle bag. "Let's go get some food."

Jess grabbed his wallet and keys before propping the door open for Rory. "Let's go."

* * *

After the initial first days of Rory's visit, both Rory and Jess had calmed down and stopped getting angry. Jess even had to admit that having Rory around was an asset to his study habits, considering that she was taking almost identical classes and was also available to quiz him on the material.

Friday night was an easy favorite for both of them. There was no longer any work that needed to be done and Jess could finally relax. The first order of business was to order the biggest pizza they could find and rent as many movies as they thought possible to get through in one weekend.

The pepperoni dripped off Rory's slice of pizza as Jess held her close against him on his bed. Almost Famous was playing across the television, but they weren't really paying attention to the movie as much as they were each other. It was a nice change of pace for both of them because they had been on edge for most of the week. At times, Jess was worried that he had ruined Rory's spring break with the idea of bringing her out to California rather than letting her go home for the week.

It hadn't been as relaxing as he had hoped it would be. It didn't help matters much that he had so much work to do. Jess secretly wondered if the week in Boston would be the same, but he kept that to himself.

"We have the whole place to ourselves," Jess reminded her, holding her closer.

She smiled, pepperoni slice still in hand. "I know." Grinning, Rory set her pizza crusts in the box before pushing Jess lightly onto his bed.

"Are you trying to seduce me?" He asked, his voice taking on a huskier tone.

"Maybe." She smiled. "We haven't in a while," Rory reminded him.

"Not since winter break."

"And even then, not enough." Rory lowered her body on top of his.

Jess grasped her hips and flipped them on the small bed so that he was on top. Feeling his way down, Jess kissed from her ear to her collarbone. After earning a contented moan from Rory, he tucked his hand into the back pocket of her jeans. "I think these have to go," he said, tugging on the belt loops.

"I think so too," she said, shimming out of the pants.

The flight was scheduled for eight o'clock on Saturday night. Rory's plane would land at Logan Airport and Lorelai was going to meet her at the gate. They were planning a night in Boston before Rory's break was completely over.

"It was a rough week," Jess admitted sadly, arm slung over Rory's shoulders. They had just checked her bag and were waiting on her delayed flight.

"Yeah," she agreed, eyes tipping to the floor.

"It's going to get harder," he said.

"I know."

"Maybe we need to think about how we're going to handle being apart."

This wasn't the conversation they thought they would be having at this stage. It had been a long few months and they had survived so far.

Rory scuffed her sneaker against the carpeting. "I don't know what to do."

"Maybe we should…"

"But I don't want to break up," she interjected quickly.

Jess shook his head. "I wasn't going to say that. Rory, I would never send you on a plane after breaking up with you. That's not right. I was going to say that we should see how things go when I'm in Boston with you and decide some things."

"Like what?"

"I don't know," Jess answered. "Like if we think maybe right now would be a good time to just be friends."

"Just be friends?" Rory asked.

"You know. Like how it was in Chilton. Maybe we just need to take a break and our problems will figure themselves out."

Rory shook her head. "They'll just pop up when we get back together."

"They might not," Jess said. "You know, I was thinking about going to school closer. Luke and I talked about the possibility of transferring over to Columbia, if they would accept me as a transfer."

"But that wouldn't be until sometime next year," Rory pointed out.

"Exactly. But how much extra stress is on our shoulders because we're fighting so much? Look, we barely went through a week without being at each other's throats. Don't you remember how much we yelled this week? How much we hang up on each other on a regular basis?" Jess tried to remind her.

Sadly, Rory nodded. She had been worried that their relationship was coming to an end for weeks. She just didn't want to bring it up either. It wasn't her first choice; she still wanted to be with Jess. "Do you…do you think it would be best?" she asked hesitantly.

"I'm leaving this up to you, Rory," Jess said adamantly. "I want us to spend the week together in Boston and then we should figure it out. Maybe we'll get better."

Rory nodded. "Hey, I think that's my plane," she said, pointing to the outgoing flight board. Her flight number was lit up in red lettering. "I have to get my gate," she said, pulling Jess along.

He kissed her lovingly and flicked her earlobe with his tongue. "Whatever you decide," he said, "I'll always love you."

Tears stung at her eyes as she let go of Jess's hand. She didn't want to answer him and she didn't want to let him see her cry. She departed to the gate a few feet away as Jess watched. After she boarded the plane, Rory snuggled into her seat against the window and finally let her tears spill over.

* * *

Back at school, Rory felt like a different person was living in her body. She had no motivation to get out of bed and do homework and go to the classes she hated. Cecile even noticed the change in her roommate and constantly invited her to attend study groups and dinner just to get her out of the room.

Jess called every night that week to chat, hoping that they would be able to completely clear the air and patch up their wounds before he arrived in Boston for his vacation. Rory had already begun to regret their mismatched spring breaks during the last week, and she was dreading Jess's arrival.

Jess watched for the blue baseball cap as he stepped away from the gate. Finally, he spotted Luke from afar just as Luke caught sight of the standard leather jacket that he was wearing.

"How much stuff do you have?" Luke asked as they matched strides.

"Not much," Jess said. "Just a duffel bag and the carry on."

They walked silently to where Jess needed to pick up his bag and waited for it to rotate around.

"How's everything at home?" Jess asked suddenly, his voice soft.

"Fine."

"Depending on what happens with Rory, I might just stay the whole week."

"Why?" Luke asked, pausing to look at Jess.

He was able to evade the question by spotting his duffel bag. Quickly, Jess grabbed the bag and started walking.

"Hey." Luke grabbed Jess by the arm of his leather jacket. He wasn't going to let him get off without an answer. "What do you mean?"

"Nothing," Jess said quickly.

"You said you might stay the whole week if things with Rory didn't work out. What did you mean by that?"

Jess realized he had closed himself into a corner by saying something to Luke. It wasn't his first thought that Luke would want him to elaborate on his statement. He looked up sheepishly at his uncle while raking his fingers through his hair. "Rory and I haven't been so hot," Jess admitted, looking away.

"Why? What's been going on?" Luke tried to usher Jess away from the crowded aisles. "Come on, let's go. Tell me in the car."

Jess and Luke packed the bags into the truck and Luke paid for parking. As they pulled away from the airport, Jess started to examine a black smudge on the white sole of his sneaker.

"You were going to talk?" Luke prompted.

"It's getting really hard," Jess said. He tried to keep busy by playing with his hands.

"You and Rory?"

"Yeah. We fight. We fight a lot," he admitted. "Sometimes I think it's my fault because I left, but I don't want to think that because I chose the school I wanted, I caused us to break up," he said quickly.

"I don't think Rory sees it as that," Luke said.

"I think she does. I didn't even know how to bring it up."

Luke looked away from the road briefly and glanced at his seemingly shy nephew. "I don't think she blames you for anything."

"Well, I would blame me," Jess said.

"I don't see why you should." Luke shook his head. "Try to relax this weekend, and don't worry."

"Okay," Jess said.

Luke eventually pulled up in front of the diner and parked. They went upstairs and Jess finally let out the sigh of relief he didn't realize he had been holding.

"You and Rory having any other problems?" Luke asked as Jess set down his things.

"Yeah," he mumbled, hoping the conversation would have waited for later.

"Okay," Luke said. He wasn't sure whether or not to drop the subject or keep the conversation going. When Jess didn't offer anything else, Luke figured he should move on to the next order of business. "Have you eaten a cooked meal lately?"

Jess shook his head. "Not since I was home last."

"Well, then I think I should make you something to eat tonight," Luke said. "What do you want?"

Jess shuffled his sneakers against the floor. The rubber toe was starting to separate from the sole. "Whatever."

Luke glanced over at his glum nephew. "You need a new pair of shoes."

"Sorry," he apologized.

"Not a bad thing. We'll pick up a new pair tomorrow?" Luke asked, needing Jess to agree.

"Sure."

"No preference for dinner, then?" Luke asked.

"Anything you make is better than the cafeteria."

"Then chicken is okay with you?"

"Sounds great," Jess agreed. It would be nice to eat something other than cafeteria slop and take out.

Luke went back into the kitchenette and started dinner while Jess went to relax on his bed with a book. Being home felt so good that he didn't want to leave – especially not to see Rory.


	40. One For the Road

This is the end. I know it has been getting sad. When you think about it, there wouldn't be a story or a plot if I had sent both Rory and Jess to Harvard. It would have been the same, day in, day out, and I didn't want that. I will be finishing up the epilogue within the next couple of days so that I can post that as well. What I would advise is the add me to your author alerts between now and after the epilogue is posted, that way you will be notified when I post the sequel. It's been a nice long ride writing this and I'm happy to have brought this story to so many readers. Thank you for an incredible three years.

Disclaimer: Never mine. And thank God for that, am I right?

* * *

"God! Jess, I'm busy!" Rory snapped, smacking Jess's wandering hand away.

Jess stepped back and settled on the bed. "Sorry," he snapped back, opening his book. He had been sitting on the bed for the past five hours while Rory worked on her homework and studied. "I could help you study," he bit back.

"I don't _want _your help!" Rory slammed her pencil against the desk and it bounced away under the bed.

Cecile cracked open the door. "You guys all set in there?" she asked, hoping they were dressed so she could go into the room.

"Yeah," Rory answered. Jess groaned and tipped his body back on the bed, his head slapping against the stack of pillows. "How was your day?" she asked as Cecile let herself in.

"It was good." Cecile dropped her bag to the floor and started pulling things out to arrange on her desk.

"You want to get dinner any time soon?" Jess asked, looking away from the page. His stomach had been growling all afternoon and he could hear it rumble under the covers.

"Yeah. I'm almost done."

Jess mumbled under his breath that she had said that an hour ago before covering his eyes with the book to block out the light. He knew it had to be hypocritical to be frustrated, but he had at least tried to make time for Rory.

An hour later, Rory curled up in bed next to her sleeping boyfriend.

"Are you done yet?" he mumbled, opening one eye to see that the sun had finally set.

"Yeah, I'm all done," Rory said. "Do you want some food?"

He hadn't eaten since that morning when they left the dorms early for breakfast. "Yeah. I'm starving." Unlike Jess, Rory didn't actually keep much edible food in her room and he wasn't going to scrounge through her drawers when she was gone. Tomorrow, Jess was just going to explore rather than wait for Rory in her room.

"Do you want to order a pizza?" Rory asked.

"Sure."

"Pepperoni?" Rory reached for her phone and browsed through the numbers.

"Pepperoni is fine," Jess said. He pulled his wallet out of his pocket and thumbed through his money. He plucked out a bill and tented it against the desk. "Get cheesy bread too," he requested, motioning toward the money.

Rory nodded as she hit send to call the pizza place.

Jess went back to his book as Rory called in the pizza.

"Twenty-five to thirty minutes," she reported, sliding back into bed with Jess.

He pocketed the book and slung his arm across her shoulders. "Have you thought about what I said?"

Rory didn't need to think about what Jess meant. There weren't many things that were up for discussion at the moment besides what he said the last time they saw each other. "Yes." A pause. "I don't want to be the one who decides."

Decisions were not Rory's strong point and Jess should have realized she would put the weight of the decision on his shoulders.

"Okay," Jess agreed. "So since we're not talking about that, what do you want to do while we wait for the pizza?"

Rory paused. "I don't know. Just as long as we're not airing out our problems."

"Well, I'm not really sure what we're supposed to do then."

"You know, there was a time when we were happy," Rory reminded him. "What happened?"

Sighing, Jess held her tighter. "The distance," he whispered.

She wanted to cry. "I hate this. I hate it so much."

Jess wrapped his arms around Rory. "I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't realize it was going to tear us apart so much." All he wanted was to go back to the good old days where they could survive a week without getting angry at each other, where they could grab coffee at a moment's notice, where they were so in love that all they needed was to be together. "I hate this too," he whispered. The odd thing about it was that Jess didn't regret taking off to California. He just wished it didn't carry these ramifications.

"What are we supposed to do?" Rory whispered back to him, adjusting her head on his shoulder.

"I guess we need to make the best of it," Jess reasoned.

"Make the best of it?" Rory asked. "How are we supposed to do that?"

"Hmm. I don't know. Maybe by not arguing so much and trying to spend as much time together as possible," Jess suggested.

"But how are we supposed to do that and survive for the next three years?"

"Try really hard," Jess suggested. "It's really all we can do right now until we get used to being apart for so long. Remember, we have the summer and winter break together. That's not too bad."

"I guess not," Rory relented, mentally trying to figure out how many days out of the year she would actually be able to spend with Jess.

They stayed sprawled in bed together silently while they waited for the pizza to arrive. They just enjoyed being together without an argument for once. It was nice just to be together.

* * *

They fought over everything – food, sightseeing, homework, sleeping. Everything. Every other word out of his mouth was a swear; every other word out of her mouth was an apology. When Rory tried to do her work, Jess always tried to help and was shot down. When Jess wanted to explore, Rory was too busy or didn't want to go out. Despite their pact to stop fighting, Jess and Rory were bickering more than ever. And it was hurting them more than they could have imagined.

"You never want to have sex anymore," Rory pointed out in the heat of their current argument. "It's like you have something else in California."

"I can't believe you would ever think that!" Jess exploded. He had been trying to harness his anger, but there was no way he was holding back now. "How can you accuse me when all I've ever done is love you?"

There was a little piece of Rory that regretted everything that happened while Jess was with her at Harvard. They were butting heads more than ever now that they were together again. "Because!" she shouted. "You're all over California making nice with girls at parties. How do I know you aren't doing anything?"

"Because you should trust me by now!" Jess argued back. "I've done nothing but devote myself to you."

She should have known that, but part of her wanted to argue, to prove him wrong, to rile him up, to cause a scene. She had no idea why. It just felt natural to be fighting. "We haven't been the same since you left."

Jess sighed. His sexual attraction to his girlfriend hadn't waned because of other girls on the beach or at parties. As far as he knew, his sexual attraction hadn't waned at all. He had even tried to make a move on her the other day and he had been denied. "This has nothing to do with me leaving."

She knew every levelheaded answer made sense, but she couldn't shake the feeling that there was something Jess was hiding. Rory was just paranoid after being apart from him for so long. "I don't know." She shook her head. "I don't know anymore."

"I guess you don't." Jess turned around and walked away, sitting down on her bed. He was glad they were at least fighting while Rory's roommate was away. He hoped Rory hadn't made him sound like a bad guy when he wasn't there to protect himself.

* * *

As with Rory's visit to California, Friday night was surprisingly tame. They didn't fight and the smallest argument was nipped in the bud. The two bickering lovers went on a date and didn't fight. They ate pizza at Rory's favorite pizza place and saw the newest movie playing at the cinema in Harvard Square. For the moment, there was no fighting and everything was just as they had remembered. But the week was almost over and they had wasted it with arguments and accusations. They wouldn't even see each other for two months and they hadn't made the best of their time together. It was just the way things were starting to evolve. They didn't like it, but they had to deal with it.

"How are your classes going?" Rory asked in a feeble attempt to get a conversation going without an argument.

"They're good," Jess said, keeping her hand in his while they strolled with their ice cream cones. "I'll be glad when the semester is over though."

Rory nodded in agreement. "It's been a difficult semester," she added. "I just want a new set of classes."

"The radio show is really keeping me busy," Jess said.

"That's great," Rory said. "I'm glad you found everything you wanted to find in California."

"Well, I don't have everything I want in California," Jess said, hoping to end the impending battle before it started.

"You don't?" she asked.

"Well, I don't have you," he said, squeezing her hand.

It was nice to feel wanted, something she hadn't felt in a while. "I wish we could have been together more this year," she lamented.

He didn't even want to delve deeper into the issue, so Jess held his tongue as they continued walking around Harvard Square in peace and infatuation. He had often thought of how their lives would have been different if he had taken his seat at Harvard. Sure, he was happy where he was right now. Just thinking about it caused his brow to furrow, evoking a glance from Rory.

"Everything okay?" she asked as they continued to stroll arm in arm.

"Yeah," he said sullenly, looking up at the stars. "Peachy."

* * *

After the end of the week, Rory and Jess took the train over to Logan airport. The ride was mostly silent, both parties afraid to speak with the fear of sparking another argument. They were both engulfed in their private thoughts as the blue line chugged along the rails. There was a lot to mull over that had happened in the week, a lot to consider, and even more to fix.

Jess hated to be the one to deliver the final blow, but he was also the one who committed himself to flight or fight in the relationship. Maybe things weren't going as planned, but could he really be without Rory? Could he be independent, on his own? Not one single day had gone by where he didn't think of her and love her, even in their earlier years when she was merely a crush instead of a kiss that lingered on his lips. There were so many things to consider when it came to formulating how the relationship would turn out.

On one hand, going back to being friends could be the best break they would ever have. It would be a pause in their relationship without really ending things. After they figured out how to handle the distance, maybe they could try things again. Their relationship had never been complicated before they took the extra step into the dating territory. When they fought back then, Jess never considered his options or looked for a back door.

On the other hand, Jess couldn't guarantee that everything would work out if they stayed together. What if things got even worse than they were currently? They weren't going to see each other until the middle of May and it was the end of March. Two months changed a lot of things; they already knew this from experience. This wasn't one little fight. It was a long, winding road of arguments fueled by the fact that they were now located a couple thousand miles away, which were a couple thousand miles too far past the breaking point.

Wouldn't it be better to at least be friends and stay together than try to tough it out and possibly not make it?

Couples did this all the time. It was nothing new. He wanted to wake up in Stars Hollow three years from now after they had graduated and have coffee with Rory in civil manner rather than drag out their relationship and kill everything they had ever had – Chilton, riding around in his car with the music blaring, hot chocolate on the bridge during the first snow, sneaking through the window, no expectations, the open ended argument where he could walk away for twenty minutes or two days and walk back down the street when he was ready to apologize or finish fighting, or forget what they were fighting about.

He was babbling inside his head and was realizing just how much he missed his old relationship with Rory and how much he wanted it back, how much he wanted, no, needed, it to go back to how it used to be.

It was starting to make more sense in his head, no matter how much he hated the initial idea.

Jess straightened up and looked Rory in the eye, trying to regain his confidence as they stood there. "I've been thinking about it," he said. There could not be a long conversation at this point when his plane was already boarding to California. Maybe this was better. "It's…been hard," he stumbled. She was starting at him blankly. "This is my fault," he admitted. "And…and I'm sorry. Maybe for now we really are better off as just friends."

"Okay," Rory said. She knew Jess expected more, but she wasn't going to give it to him. The announcement for the final boarding of his plane rang over the loudspeaker. Perfect. "Your plane's leaving," she said before turning around. Part of her nagged to not do this, but the dominant half continued walking out of the airport without turning back to see the look on his face.


	41. Diamonds and Rust

This is devilishly short, and for that I am sorry. It's just the epilogue, and more or less, a sneak peak as to what the sequel holds. Hopefully this will give everyone a little taste of what is to come. Remember to add me to your alert list if you want to be notified about the sequel, as this is the _last_ update that will be posted for Diamonds and Rust. The sequel will be titled **Diamond Dust**, so if you don't have an account or don't want to subscribe to the incessant alert spam, that's the title you want to look for on the main page.

Again, I can't thank everyone enough for sticking with me and this story. It's been an amazing three-year run with you!

Disclaimer: I wish.

* * *

_Seven years later…_

Jess assembled a mental checklist as he grabbed his belongings, toting them into the living room where he could sprawl out on the couch and spread his books across the coffee table. After setting up his work space, he poured coffee into his favorite mug and settled into the worn middle section of his sofa.

Sunday mornings were a favorite of Jess Mariano, for they were when he got all his work done. As a graduate student at Columbia University, there was a lot of work that needed to be done on the weekends. Unfortunately, most of his lesson plans and grading took up the time he needed to write papers. Jess taught high school English and was eternally swamped when it came to his to-do list.

Which was why, in the middle of writing a paper, he was a bit peeved that his phone was ringing. Most people knew not to call Jess when he was scrambling to get things done for Monday morning, which was usually when he handed back assignments. Sighing, he tossed his notepad and laptop aside in favor of the ringing phone.

"Mariano," he answered sharply, hoping it wasn't a student that needed assistance on the project that was due the next morning.

"Jess?"

He nearly dropped the phone. She didn't even need to tell him who she was. Jess knew. Immediately, he hardened. His voice caught in his throat and his breath became shallow. There were a million questions he felt he should ask and an equal number of explanations that she should give. Somehow, none of that mattered at that very moment.

Slowly, he collected himself and hoped that she hadn't hung up. "What? Why are you…?" his voice hitched in his throat as he tried to complete the sentence because he couldn't find the words. There were too many days he had wasted, spent them wishing she would call, contact him in any way, shape, or form.

"I'm outside your door," she admitted softly.

He almost dropped the phone in shock. Everything that he wanted to say escaped his mind as he sat wordlessly on the couch, mouth agape. "Okay," he said simply. Jess let the phone fall to his side as he padded over to the front door of his apartment. Every footstep felt heavier than last until he wondered how long it was taking him to walk across the room. Hesitantly, he reached forward and opened the heavy door. "Rory," he said, shaking his hair with disbelief.

* * *

_I'll be damned, here comes your ghost again__  
__But that's not unusual__  
__It's just that the moon is full__  
__And you decided to call_

_And here I sit, hand on the telephone__  
__Hearing the voice I'd known__  
__A couple of light years ago__  
__Headed straight for a fall_

_But we both know what memories can bring__  
__They bring Diamonds and Rust__  
__Yes we both know what memories can bring__  
__They bring Diamonds and Rust_

_Now you're telling me you're not nostalgic__  
__Then give me another word for it__  
__You were so good with words__  
__And at keeping things vague_

_Cause I need some of that vagueness now__  
__It's all come back too clearly, yes, I love you dearly__  
__And if you're offering me diamonds and rust, I've already paid_


End file.
